Quest Seekers: New Moon 1
by PuddingPants
Summary: Storm is living the life he always wanted. Free and wiled, like he was born to be. But visits from a cat named Fawn flipped his whole life around. Now he has to travel to a place that might as well not exist. Along the way he meets trustful allies and of course, where there is good, bad is sure to come.


Quest Seekers

_Book One: New Moon_

**Meet the characters you will travel with in this book!**

**Storm**- Handsome, tall silver gray tomcat with short fur and lime green eyes with broad claws that are thorn sharp and pointed fangs. His attitude results in brave and loyal.

**Fawn- **Pretty long furred she-cat with ginger cream colored fur and a white underbelly covered with silver flecks, aslo has two different color eyes. Green and blue. Her attitude is caring yet feirce.

**Bat (Tigerfang)-** Short furred brown tabby with wide amber eyes, white tipped tail, and sharp teeth. His fur is scruffy and his attitude his sharp and untrusting.

**Dovie- **Short furred she-cat with white fur and dark green eyes. Her tail looks suprisingly fluffy at the end despite her short pelt, her personality is kind and trusting.

**Blackheart- **A tall, musculare tomcat with a black, battle-scarred pelt. He has two white front paws and blood red eyes, he is an evil cat with dark ambitions.

The Legend of The Sages

A long time ago, before recorded history, a king ruled Olympus. His name was Zeus. But before Zeus had a wife, he had a cat. This cat was an Egyptian Mau who ran by the name, Chione, she was one of the three cats that held special powers. The other cat was the Russian Blue of Poseidon who's name was Bakari, and last but certainly not least, Hade's Bombay, Darian. Each full moon, the three cats would leave their Masters chambers and meet in the Garden of Adam and Eve. "It would be impossible to protect the Gods of fire, water, and sky at the same time. We don't have enough power to hold a thick barrier." Bakari meowed one night. Chione sat silently as she listened to the two males complain. "Hade's has already used up the power of the Darkness on a suitable chamber for Proserpina. He has to rest in order to reanimate." Darian hissed. Chione raised her tail and instantly both toms shut up. She stood and silently walked towards the two of them. "I have been giving this alot of thought, my friends," She said in a purr that sounded like the most smoothest of Egyptian honey. "We should combine our powers. Togeather, we can build a new era for the future. Our Masters cannot live forever." Darian snorted. "A good eon, yes." He growled. Bakari narrowed his eyes in thought, his grey-blue fur was sleek and shining in the moonlight, his breath smelt of salmon as he spoke, "I agree, Chione. While our Masters are weak, we remain strong. Poseidon has been too busy searching for his beloved Medusa to pay any thought to his waterworld citizens, It's time to take action." He meowed. "Its now or never." Chione replied, bowing her head respectfully before looking at Darian. "Come now, 'Dare," She continued. "Don't you think Hade's will reward you with ripe strawberries and raspberries when he hears his cat, Darian the Mighty, saved his homeland in the Underworld?" Darian was silent for a heartbeat, then he sat upright and bowed his head. "If it will do my Dark Lord well, then I will help." Togeather, the three cats created a prophecy of Light, they called the Sages. Named after Chione's sister who died in battle. But Light comes with a price, considering Darian was the cat of the High Lord of Darkness, the fire element created a Dark to battle with the Light. On the last day of their project, each cat was taking their last breath before dieing to become one with the wind and flow inside a tree. Chione was first to go, but before she did, she lay on the velvet red pillow on the end of Zeus's bed in his sleepingchambers. Grey surrounded her acient muzzle and Zeus was stroking her fur. "Forgive me, my friend," Zeus said. "I should have spent more time with you when you were young." Zeus' voice was friendly and somber at the same time as he stroked her fur. Chione stiffled a yawn and then meowed, "It's fine, Master. Just wait and see." Then she tucked herself into the open part of her mind where Darian and Bakari were awaiting her last words. She closed her eyes and projected her meow, _"This is the end, my friends, we need to put all we have into the last bit of power in the prophecies barrier, then we may rest in peace." _ Darian was the first to reply. _"Im ready when you are, Chione. Just mew the word." "Let's do it." _That was Bakari's meow that came a few heartbeats later. Chione smiled silently to herself and then gathered up all the strength withen her, she stared at the giant multi-colored ball in the core of her heart and set the brand of Zeus on it, after a while, she saw Poseidon's mark of a circles surrounding an even larger circle, and then Hade's mark of a flame. _"Let's finish it!" _Chione purred as she unsheathed her calws and sank them into the velvet of the pillow. All togeather, the three of them sent their element and the element of everything a feline needs to survive inside the mutlti-colored prophecy energy orb. At last, the power surge was complete, and they were allowed to say the prayer to conceal the propechy for many eons, the voices of Bakari and Darian rang in her ears as they said it as well. _"I say these words before the gods of fire, water, and sky. For my fur his grey with age and my eyes no longer shine, with each breath I take it's to save this prophecy for the future rulers who worship our Masters. Guide them and protect them. Hunting, strength, speed, healing, and tracking all gather beneath the stars on this very night to welcome the first ever of Sages. Lovebird, cat of Cupid. Shine, cat of Apollo. Kakina, cat of Daphne. Caesar, cat of Diana. And Virik, cat of Athena."_ Her breathing slowed as she felt the presence of Darian and Bakari fading from her mind, before she knew it, her eyesight went blank, and her phantom drifted off to become one with the wind and breeze towards the youngest tree in the forest.

Prologue

A beautiful she-cat with pretty cream colored fur and white underbelly that was dappled with silver walked calmly on four steady paws, her beautiful green and blue eyes shining in the morning sunlight, her fluffy tail calmly flicked a peice of moss that had clung onto her coat while she was asleep in her hollow, her name was Fawn. She sighed in happiness as she narrowed her eyes at the sun, big and bright as always. Its been one whole season now since she had run away with her mate to find a new life in the forest, she had left everything behind. Her Upwalkers, her kin, a nice warm place to sleep. But as she bent her head and licked her slightly swollen stomach, she knew everything would work out perfectly. A purr rose inside of her as she looked at her mate, Arrow, coming back from his hunt, it looked pretty well as two mice hung from his jaws. Arrow was an all black tomcat with slitted yellow eyes, the only sighn of true color on his pelt was his two hind paws, wich were white at the very tip. "You should really think about taking that thing off." Arrow growled at her as he set his catch down at her paws and flicked with his ears toward her blue pet collar. Fawn shrugged, it was so like Arrow to be the one to judge. "Im fine with it on, it reminds me of where I come from." She meowed as she settled down to eat, she felt a small push in her stomach, not hard, but not soft either. She could feel the little lives inside of her crawling with hunger. "Its ok, loves." She purred as she gently ran her tail over her flank, her soothing voice settled the kittens down a little. She looked into Arrow's worried gaze, she could smell the fear-scent rising from his coat. "Its ok." She told him. "Their hungry; thats all." She meowed, before sanking her teeth into the most delicious peice of prey she had ever eaten. "If you say so." Arrow sighed, before sitting down and eating his own mouse. When they were done Fawn had decided to go searching for herbs just incase the kittens came early or something bad happened to Arrow while he was on a hunt. And, as always, Arrow stuck by her side incase of assistance or something. As they neared a meadow she could smell half of the herbs they might need. _dandelion for bee stings, _she said silently to herself as she and Arrow padded side by side into the grassy opening. "Dandelion. Find dandelion." She meowed to him. Arrow nodded and walked a few paces away from her, while she turned in a different direction in search of comfrey. She could smell the scent of comfrey from somewhere. . .she stuck her nose around and tasted the air. Nope, no comfrey here. "I found it!" Said a stuffed meow from behind her, she turned around, only to see Arrow walking in her direction with three dandelions in his mouth, the roots were still hanging on to the stem, thank goodness. "Thank-you, why dont you carry those and I'll find some comfrey, after we'll start looking for some ferns, feverfew, and dock?" She offered, licking her mates ear in praise. "'Kay." Was Arrows only response as he followed her deeper into the meadow. _Comfrey. . .comfrey. . .ah._ She finally found the large leaf and bell shaped, pink, flowers, comfrey was the herb to repair broken bones or to soothe wounds, where dandelion roots were used for sleep and the white stuff inside the stem for bee stings. She bent her head and picked up the comfrey before raising her head and looking back at Arrow, he was a few mouse tails behind her, staring at something else, looking confused. She retraced her steps untill she was at his side. Putting down the comfrey, she looked at him. "Something wrong?" Fawn asked, nudging him with her head. He pointed, with his ears, toward a small, purple flowering plant. _Lavender! _great for easing pains and for the chills and fevers. "Amazing! How did you recognize it? I just walked right past it." Fawn said, picking the lavender from the ground and then picking up the comfrey. "I saw you use it once, can we take all this back now?" Arrow asked. Fawn nodded, her mouth was too full of herbs for her to say anything else.

When they finally finished gathering the herbs it was moonrise and they were back at the hollow tree, the hollow had its roots overlapping the ground so it formed into a shelter, later Arrow had drapped the roots with vines and flowers he found to give them their protection from the cold. Arrow was curled up, his long tail was flicking in his sleep, but Fawn was wide awake, looking over the herbs. _Borage, basil, burdock, dandelion, catchweed, lavender, ferns, chamomile, chervil, lamb's ear, and ragwort, _she thought, taking inventory on what she has and what she needs. _Tommorow I'll need to go down to the marsh and get some horsetail. . .and maybe some tansy._ Rustling brought her back to the waking world, she turned to see Arrow staring at her, his eyes drowsy but still held a hint of rage. "Shouldn't you be asleep?" He hissed, his tail lashing. She sighed, and looked at all her herbs. "What if something goes wrong?" She whispered, she knew there was a herb to stop the bleeding during the birth but she was so confused right now was it tansy or raspberry leaves? If she used the wrong one she knew it would be a fatal birth for the kittens. She then felt a soft muzzle on her neck and a tail wrap around her body, soon enough, she was pressed against Arrow in comfort. "Everything will be fine." He assured her, licking her nose and purring. "I wish I could believe that." She murmured. "You'll see. Soon we'll have healthy kittens. That reminds me. . .we need to think about names." He meowed, his long whiskers twitching, Fawn flicked his ear with her tail. "I know how many kittens were having, but I wish I knew their genders." She admitted, it was her job to know weither they'd have lots of kittens or a small amount. "Oh? And how many?" He asked, tilting his head to one side. "Two, or maybe three. So how about for a she-kitten, Robbin. And a he-kitten. . .Chase." She said, hoping they'd have one of each. "Robbin? Really? How about. . .Leaf? Or Coal?" He offered. Fawn saw his eyes twinkle, they hadn't twinkled like that since the day they met or when they found out about her pregnancy. "I like them both." She purred. "I guess we'll just wait and see." He meowed before standing and stretching his long, sleek, legs and going back to his spot in the center. He eyed her and tapped the ground with his tail beside him. "Sleep. You need your rest." He ordered, before lying down on his side. Her whiskers twitched with amusment as she followed him, she picked her place right beside him and then turned once or twice before plopping down and lying her head on his chest. This was going to work out. . .for both the kittens and Arrow. . .

Mist swirled around Fawn's paws, her head was spinning and she could barely stand on her own paws. She looked around, she was in the clearing of a forest, the trees of the forest were high into the sky, much too high to climb all the way to the top, and below were bramble bushes. _Thats just what a pregnant cat needs, thorns and brambles._ She hissed inside her mind. "Perhaps you could. . .step forward?" A mysterious voice echoed in her ear. "W-who's there?" She hissed. No sound. She found herself being forced to walk deeper into the forest, but it promised only more clearing instead of the saftey of the trees. A giant boulder sat right infront of her as her paws finally stopped moving. The boulder had ontop of it, a shape, a shape of a cat. "Do not be afraid," An old voice croaked. "Come closer." This time, she stepped closer out of her own free will. As she got closer she could see a large, tabby tomcat, his muzzle gray with age. He hopped from the boulder, he staggered on his paws as he landed. He was a grey tabby with amber eyes and short whiskers. Fawn was speechless. . .who. . .? What. . .? Where. . .? "I am Sage, one of The Five Sages." The old tomcat said, his eyes were dull in color but they sparkled with experiance. "What do you w-want?" She asked, suddenly hostile and protective. Sage flicked his tail towards her stomach. "This wasn't suspose to happen." He croaked, shaking his head slowly. "What. . .? My kittens?!" She hissed, sliding out her claws. Sage sat calmly with his tail wrapped around his paws. "You have a destiny. Your kittens will not be apart of it, nor will Arrow." He murmured. "How did you-"  
"I am one of The Five Sages." He said again. "My name is Sage because I know all." His whiskers twitched as their tips sparkled like bits of water. Suddenly afraid, she sank back a few steps. "These times will be hard for you, Fawn. Your past will catch up to you and soon you will know why." Sage said, nothing but a whisper in her ear as she stepped back more. She shook her head franticly. _A dream. . .this is nothing but a dream. _She kept saying in her mind. A dream. As the earth started spinning again she realized that the voice of old Sage still rang in her ear of a prophecy: _"There will be five of a kind. Speed, hunting, healing, tracking, and strength. All bound by one. The moons light rested on the gentle fawn in the midst of a storm"_

Chapter 1

Storm flexed his broad shoulders, his whiskers brushed the side of the bush as he slid his body through, brambles poked at his skin but he barely noticed as he eyed his prey. A shrew was nibbling on a tiny dandelion, its ears were twitching with each bite. Storm got into a pouncing position, his front paws low to the ground to carry his weight and his hind legs up straight, his tail stayed down low so it wouldn't give him away. The shrew poked its head up from its constant eating, as if it had heard all of his movements. He leaped into the air in a perfect pounce, his claws unsheathed, as he landed he felt flesh beneath his claws and pads. He bit down on the shrew so it wouldn't escape, finishing it off with a final death bite. He looked up at the sun, the shrew dangling from his jaws. "Nice catch!" A young voice sounded from behind him. He quickly turned around, startled, he unsheathed his claws so they'd sank into the ground at the sight of the kitten that ran up to him on wobbly paws. _Oh. Honey ._ . . The kitten's name was Honey and she had a ginger tabby colored coat with amber eyes, she lived with Upwalkers that weren't far from here, though the kitten still didn't need to be wondering about. "Go back home." He ordered, before he dug a hole and dropped his prey into the ground and then covering it up again. Honey stared up at him, her eyes huge. "Why did you do that? Stick it into the ground?" She meowed. "So unwanted visitors wont find it, now good-bye." He grunted as he nudged the kitten back towards her Upwalker's den. Honey jumped up with a sparkle in her eyes. "Cool! Can you teach me how to hunt?" She asked. Before he could say no the plump kitten got down in a hunting position, stalking. Her tail was up and her back legs were wobbly as she stalked air, suddenly, she leaped onto a leaf, purring and then rolling onto her back and pushing the leaf back up in the air with a smooth ginger colored forepaw. Storm sighed. "Shouldn't you be with your Upwalkers?" He meowed, turning and then tasting the air for more prey. "Well, my Upwalkers are out of their dens today." She mewed, sounding sad for a moment and then dropped back into a horrible low crouch. "So?" He hissed, the scent of mouse filling his nostrils. "Well. . .I followed your scent out here and. . .I was curious." She admitted, looking at her paws. "Look, the forest is no place for a pet like you," Storm meowed, looking at the almost grown kitten. "Theres all kind of dangers here, do you realize that if you get hurt, no cat would be there to help you?" Honey nodded, still looking at her paws. Storm felt a warm breeze blow onto his short furred silver pelt, his lime green eyes watered as the scent of the mouse grew stronger as he just stood there. "You'd better go now." He meowed, the tip of his tail twitched. Honey nodded, her amber eyes shining. "I'll visit again soon!" She yowled as she darted toward her Upwalker's den. _Pets! _He sneered in his mind. Now that the little runt was gone, he could focus on more important things, totally forgetting about the mouse he was about to go after, he dug up his shrew and hooked it in his jaws, looking around with peircing green eyes for any sighn of another animal about. None. He stood up straight, shaking his coat in a dog-like manner before padding further into the forest, the tall pine trees spread for miles and miles on end, he had gotten use to calling this place Sky Pines, because of how tall and wide they spread throught the forest. As he walked on, he found a small patch of sunlight in a small opening in which he could bask and eat. He lied down and dropped his prey between his paws, he eyed his forepaws as he noticed that his claws were still unsheathed, in an instant, he retracted them. The rays of the sunlight danced on Storms coat, making dapple like flecks that warmed him to the core. When he knew he was in a comfortable position, he sank his sharp fangs into his catch. _I've caught better prey, _he thought as he swollowed and took another bite. The bright sun and light blue sky that was fluffed with clouds were being replaced by a magnificent full moon and slowly appearing stars, the blue was beginning to fade into a dark blue and purple combination as he slowly finished off his shrew. As he arose, he ran his tongue over his lips and then licked the crumbs from his whiskers. _Nightfall is coming sooner than I thought. . ._he noticed as he began retracing his pawsteps. By instinct he padded towards Honey's Upwalker's den, he had always seeked refuge in their barn in the cold season but tonight was different. His pelt prickled and the fur on his spine rose as he felt eyes watching him, yet, everytime he turned to look, no animal was there. Soon he spotted the small white den, beside that den was a barn. The smell of mice drifted up his nostrils as he slid through a gap in the fence. He stealthly made his way through the yard, he felt the soft moist grass beneath his pads, he kept his ears perked incase any sighn of Honey's Upwalkers. When he arrived at the barn he hopped through the big gap in the side of it. Inside was warm, filled with hay and the smell of mice, the shelves above were also filled with strands of hay, followed by the faint scent of horse. He knew -mostly by scent than gossip from Honey- that the Upwalkers' horse hadn't been here for many seasons, though when Storm had shared this place with the loud mare, he had been craving sleep for moons, so the crazy animal leaving wouldn't be a problem for him. If he wasn't so full from his hunt, he could do with a mouse right about now, but instead he hopped onto a hay stack, then another, then another. Leading up to one of the top shelves, he slid onto it. Looking down, he knew he was ready for danger in or out of the barn. Confirming his saftey, Storm circled on a spot on the shelf once or twice before plopping down on his side, he gently raised his head to run his tongue over his flank in smooth, rythmic licks, smoothing his fur and flicking the stray stems of hay from his coat. Suddenly he heard steps, his ears shot up in alarm as he peeked down to the floor, there stood Honey. She was looking up at him with dreary eyes, the silver bell on her collar jingled a little as she hopped from hay stack to hay stack untill she scurried over to him and circled in a spot between his hind legs and his forepaws then plopped down. She curled up in a tight ball; her tail gently lied across her nose. "Honey. . .what are you doing in here?" He meowed, almost a hiss. If the tiny kitten took any notice to what he had to say at all, she didnt react to it. The only thing she did was make a sound that sounded like a mix between a snore and a purr. He snorted and licked a front paw untill it was smooth and flat, then he flashed a look a Honey, her body was slowly rising and falling with calm breaths. He bent his head and licked her between the ears like a father grooming his kitten. He lifted his head and lied it down on the hay, he felt sure of himself as he drowsed into a calm sleep, the smell of mice still hot in his nose. Storm awoke in starlight, he felt long dark green marsh grass brush along his flanks as he looked around the mysterious place. The grass was just as tall as his lower shoulder and as he looked around the wide landscape, he could see an ocean that stretched farther than the eye could see, he saw a large boulder tower above it all as it lay by the shore. Fireflies flew in the deep marsh grass, circling him with yellow ember lights. This place almost made him want to jump in delight and roll around like he was a kitten again!Something in the corner of his eye caught his attention, he turned to see the most beautiful cat he had ever seen. She stood a tree branch length from him, she had long light ginger cream colored fur -sort of like Honey's but much lighter and her tabby markings weren't as visible- and a white underbelly with gentle strokes of silver flecks, her eyes were one of two colors. A pine green and an ocean blue, they sparkled as they glinted from the fireflies light, though they held deep somber, so much sorrow he could feel the agony in waves coming from her pelt. Her whiskers twitched as she stepped closer, and out of reflex, he stepped farther away, crouching down incase he needed to spring into battle. Her eyes glowed with amusment. "Im not going to hurt you." She purred, stepping so close to him that he could feel her whiskers brush his muzzle. "Im a cat who likes space." He huffed as he took yet another step back. The stranger's ears flicked as she sat down, her paws were tucked under her chest and her tail wrapped neatly around her paws. "Im Fawn." She meowed, bowing her head in a formal introduction. "Storm." He replied, doing the same. "Are you a figment of my imagination?" He asked, then he looked around the marsh. "This _is_ a dream right?" Fawn studied him for a moment before nodding. "This is dream, but a special dream. . ." Her voice finished off with a whisper, her eyes grew dimmer as her tone got serious. Something about this strange cat made his ears prick to listen, was it the wisdom that glowed in her young; devine eyes, and the way she spoke every word with a purr or soft tone? Or was it her beauty, the shape of her face and the perfect angle of her ears? "I am not who you think I am. . .I am from the real world," Fawn began. "I started off as a _really _young cat carrying a litter. . .the day of my kittens birth was the day all went wrong. . .my mate, at the time, died drowning face-down in a stream, and my kittens died at birth. . .but before all of that I got a prophecy. . ._'There will be five of a kind. Speed, hunting, healing, tracking, and strength. All bound by one. The moons light rested on the gentle fawn in the midst of a storm'" _So? Storm shifted his paws impatiantly, this cat was wasting his time with stupid riddles and fake prophecies. . .made by who anyhow? "I dont understand." He murmured, flicking his tail as he sat as well. "At the end, the core of the phropecy is unleashed. 'The moons light rested on the gentle fawn in the midst of a storm'. It means that in the midst of a storm -thats you- the moons light shall reflect on the gentle fawn -thats me-." To reassure him, she swept her tail across the grass, flattening it. Soon enough, the ground fadded into a picture, one of a very young she-cat with a slightly swelled stomach listening to an old tomcat who's tabby markings seemed to glow dimly in the nights light. "His name was Sage. One of The Five Sages. He told me that bad things will happen. . .that my kittens were not ment to be born bearing Arrow, my mate, as their father." Her tone dropped to a low whisper as she gazed at Storm. He said nothing but watched as the she-cat told him things he couldn't- shouldn't believe. "So. . .what does all of this have to do with me?" He hissed, his patience pushed to their limits. Suddenly, without warning, Fawn stood quickly; her fur bristling untill she looked twice her size, and as she stood, Storm noticed that the marsh grass drew back as if a stong breeze had blew against them. When he gazed into Fawns eyes, they were scorched with anger. He tried his best not to flinch. _Huh, talk about dont judge a cat by its coat._ "You are apart of a prophecy, you stupid furball! Doesn't that mean anything to you?" She growled. But she didn't make any effort to send out a challenge of a fight. His eyes were nothing but thin slits as he shot himself up. "I am apart of no prophecy, you scrawny old crow!" He said, almost a whisper of a hiss, even though she was a young adult, he thought it was a rather good comeback. He saw her claws dig into the ground and yank up grass from their roots. "You have to help me!" Her voice was a whine now, her eyes were filled with plead. How could he say no? "What do I have to do?" He grunted. She narrowed her eyes at him. "_We. _What do _we _have to do," Fawn corrected, seeming to calm down a bit. "First you need to find me in the waking world. . ." She meowed, her tail twitched with every word. He snorted. "You could be anywhere!" He snarled, sanking his thorn sharp claws into the ground. She padded closer to him, so close they were only a claw tip apart. He could smell her scent wash around him. . ._Roses in full bloom. . ._ "I am closer then you think.. . ." She purred. "But remember, once you accept your destiny, there is no going back." Suddenly confused, he yearned to ask her more questions, but when he focused on her coat, she seemed to fade. . .the whole marsh seemed to fade! His eyesight was blinded by pitch darkness as he struggled to awaken. Storm woke with a start, Honey was towering over him, her amber eyes wide with alarm. "W-whats wrong? You were saying all sorts of stuff in your sleep!" She whined as Storm sat up, flicking scraps of hay from his pelt. "I. . .had a bad dream; thats all." He murmured, shaking his head. How much did the kitten hear? When he looked into the kittens eyes, they still held a hint of fear. He shifted his gaze towards the windows above, light shined through brightly and the birds chirped from outside. "Morning?" He whispered. Honey looked at him with a questioning glance before gazing at one of the windows. "Yeah. . .It seems as if the days have been shorter and the night has been longer. . .it scares me sometimes." Storm saw a deep shiver run along the kittens spine. "What? Afraid that your not sleeping in your mothers warm basket?" Storm teased as he hopped down from the shelf. "No way! Im a forest cat just like you!" Honey said as she jumped from hay stack to hay stack to get down. Storm purred as she padded to his side. It was rather sweet that the kitten looked up to him, but she could never be a loner, not while she still lives with Upwalkers -plus- she wouldn't make it a day by herself! Though as he looked at Honey, she had grown alot since the last time he visited the barn, even though she still had her kitten fur, she was almost as tall had Storm himself! Then her ginger tabby fur reminded him of Fawn. . .if she was so close, how come she didn't share where she was? "Why are you staring at me like that?" Honey asked, her eyes confused. Storm had just realized that he was staring directly at the kitten, he shook his head. He still thought Fawns head was filled with cloud fluff. "Want me to catch you a mouse?" He offered, the scuffling of the mice running about in the barn made his stomach wail with hunger. "Its fine. I have been working on my hunting skills." She said, tasting the air for prey as she saw him do so many times. He purred before turning and doing the same. He perked his ears as he heard tiny noises in a pile of hay. He went into a hunters crouch and watched the pile. He stood there, unmoving. Soon the tiny nose of the mouse came sniffing out, he leaped into the air and unsheathed his claws by the time he landed, hooking the broad thorn sharp things inside the mouse, by the time he recovered from the fall, he needn't a death bite, for the claws did all the work as the mouse lied there, dead. He looked over to where Honey was practicing her hunting, she was stalking a very plump mouse as it scuffled about in the open. He was suprised by her hunters crouch, it was perfect! She wiggled her haunches before she leaped into the air with unsheathed claws and pounced right ontop of the mouse, the last thing he heard was a tiny wail before Honey looked up at him, her eyes shone with pride as the mouse hung limply from her jaws. "Well done!" He praised. Perhaps she could be a forest cat after all! She hardly eats the pet food her Upwalkers give her and then theres that collar. . . "Pretty good, right?" Honey purred as she dropped the mouse to his paws and then gave her own paws a swift lick to clean tiny droplets of blood from her fur before giving out a tiny purr. "Lets eat." Storm said, flicking Honey's ear with his tail and bending down to eat his catch. As he ate, he noticed that Honey was skinnier then she was the last time he visited as well, and she ate her mouse and famished gulps. _Thats not like Honey at all. . ._he thought as he watched her from the corner of his eye between bites.

After their meal Storm had told Honey he would go out into the forest and have a walk, she had offered to come with him, and when she did there was a plea in her eyes followed by something else that he couldn't understand. . .fear. . .? He didn't deny that it was possibly fear he saw, so he let her come. If he was going to find Fawn, he needed all the help he could get, the scent of the pretty cat was still fresh in his nostrils from last night. As they padded along an open trail in the forest Honey looked up at him, as if she was hesitating to say something. "If you have something to say," Storm meowed to her. "Just say it." Honey nodded, looking at her paws as they walked on. She huffed a breath and meowed, "I. . .er. . .I just wanted to say. . .thank-you." He didn't understand why she was saying thank-you, but when he looked into her eyes, they sparkled and then dimmed. _There is something else. . .something she's not telling me_. "Hey, look!" Honey gasped, she scurried over to a tree and examined it. Storm huffed a breath as he ran after her, as he stopped at her side the air in him rushed out as he saw what was on it. There were deep claw marks that scraped the tree, they were about to pass grizzly bear territory, heck, probably already did! "Bear. . ." Storm managed, shaking his pelt in a dog-like way he looked at Honey, she was just staring at the marks with wide eyes. He wasn't afraid of nothing! "A bear made these marks. We'll just have to be quiet as we walk along. But stay on the dirt trail from now on!" Storm ordered, turning and then padding back towards the dirt path, he heard a tiny meow of agreement and in an instant he felt Honey push her body against his, he felt the most largest shudder of his life as he trailed on. "Won't your Upwalkers miss you? You might want to get back." Storm meowed, ahead he saw a rabbit or two nibbling on some berrries near a berry bush. Honey looked nervous as she licked her chest fur. "I, uh, I dont know where they are." She admitted, her tail -that was usually straight up in the air- dragged on the dirt, covering her white tip with dusty brown dust. Storm looked at her, his eyes serious. "You knew?!" Honey gasped as she sped up to match his pace. Storm snorted. "A blind badger could see that you ate that mouse as if you hadn't had a single peice of food in seasons." He meowed, understanding, he flicked the young cat on the ear with his tail playfully. Honey didnt look like her original perky self. "What happened?" He asked seriously. Honey shrugged, just a little lift to her thin shoulders. "Last half-moon I remembered seeing one of those. . .cars-" She seemed to think about the word before saying it. "-Then I remember alot of boxes and a even bigger car. This one was _huge!_ So I hid under the den. My Upwalker kept calling me but I was too afraid of the big car. When the big car was gone I tried to go inside, but the door was closed. I even tried calling, but even that didn't work! Then I gave up and I've been living under the den ever since. . ." Her voice trailed off as she shuddered from ears to tail. "Sounds alot like what happened to Flourite. . ." Storm mused. "Remember Flourite?" Honey seemed to think about the name for a second. "Oh! That pretty white female with big blue eyes, right? Yeah I remember her. What happened?" She asked, tilting her head to one side. "Well," Storm's ears twitched as he resumed. "She lived with her Upwalkers for a while with her sister Crystal. . .then she said she remembered a big truck -that big car you were talking about- and she, also, was afraid of it. Crystal said she wasn't afraid of anything and stayed very close to it. Then Flourite's Upwalkers were loading a bunch of stuff onto it. I guess they were planning to move to a new den. Anyway, In the end, Flourite was ok, her Upwalkers found her snoozing beside a shrub before they left. They live in that pink den by the orchard now." He finished. Honey nodded slowly, releif feeling her eyes. "Perhaps they'll come looking for me. . ." She meowed, half to herself. Storm didn't answer as they came across a bridge, he could smell fish and water as they neared it. Then, he spotted water running under the bridge, which seemed to be broken. The sides were cracked and half of the stones were missing from the floor, making a big hole. _One that would make an animal fall in and drown. . ._ "You should be getting back to your Upwalkers, then. They wouldn't want to walk way out here to look for you." Storm mewed as he ran his tail over her smooth flank. Honey nodded. "Im sure they'll come back If I stay In one place." She murmured, Storm could have sworn he saw something flash in the young tabbies eyes. . .Guilt? Doubt? He cupped her in the ear with a sheathed paw and a small, soft purr rose from his chest. "You'll be fine. If you need help with anything, try finding Jingle. He lives with Upwalkers now by the duck pond I use to take you to." Storm said as he turned and leaped onto the side of the bridge top. He balanced himself firmly as he looked down, that was a deep drop for one cat. He turned back to see Honey's ginger striped tail vanish over the horizon of the path. He nodded his silent farewell -too far for her to see, too silent for her to hear-. He took a deep breath and looked across on the other side of the stone bridge, his heart was telling him to go this way. . .how could he deny his feelings? He knew that if he were to cross this bridge, he would be leaving everything behind to go search for a cat who probably doesn't even exists. _"Im closer then you think. . ." _Her smooth purr was still hot in his mind. He nodded to himself, this was his destiny if not any other cats. Fawn hadn't come to find him for no reason, she wouldn't have said the things she said. Storm lifted a forepaw and started walking on the edge, focused on the possiblity of falling and perhaps breaking his own neck. As he got to he end of it he hurried to get to saftey, growing up, he had known only to be safe and guard the ones you love. As he felt the dirt under his paws, he looked back at the bridge, he was just in time to see the remainings of the unsteady, thin bridge collaps, horror had struck him solid as he watched chuncks of stone dropped into the fast running river, washing the peices downstream. How could he leave his home? Then he thought about Honey. . _.I never had a chance to tell her Im never coming back_. . .guilt hit him harder then sorrow as he eyed the spot where her tail vanished before his eyes as she left him. Honey was his only real companion if not friend. In a way, Storm thought of the young ginger tabby as kin. I mean, sure, they were different in personality, but both of them have a few similar traits, such as hunting. He spun around, it was too late now, he wasn't going to get his paws wet by swimming after her. He ran the path, as his paws roughly took on the soil underneath, he found himself wondering about the last words he shared with Fawn, _"But remember, once you accept yout destiny, there is no going back." _A deep shudder passed through him as he thought about it. Was that why the bridge collaps once he made it safely past? Or was it because of its old age and horrible condition? His fur prickled, he found it very hard to believe it was because the bridge was old. . .

Chapter 2

Storm had yet to eat since morning and hunger clawed at his stomach as he padded from the dirt path and headed towards the woods, he could smell starling and it had such a grip on his whiskers right now. He tasted the air, following the scent untill it led him to a area with a tiny clearirng surrounded by trees, he halted and dashed for a nearby bush when he spotted something that shouldn't be there. He poked his head through the bush to have another look. He saw tree trunks on the ground and he saw pyrimid thingies that looked a tad familiar to him, and he also saw a box that smelt of ice, and an Upwalker car door was open and what came out of it shocked him most of all. Upwalkers. Upwalkers? In a forest? Unreal. They never came _this _far out into the wilderness. He tasted the air and sniffed deeply, his whiskers twitched and his paws tingled as he smelt something yummy. By reflex, he slid his body from his bush, he quickly unsheathed his claws incase this got ugly, he walked on steady stealthic paws as he hopped over one of the tree trunks, careful not to land with a thump. He followed the scent untill it led to the small box that smelt of ice and fish. He narrowed his lime green slitted eyes at it before dabbing at it was an unsheathed paw, then his aggresive side took over, he lashed out at it. Satisfaction overran him as he abserved deep, long claw marks where he lied a blow. Then he heard a big _smash! _He jumped in fright, turning around, he saw that the Upwalkers had dropped something on the ground. He hid behind the small box, hoping it would conceal him, as two more Upwalkers emerged from the pyramid things. If only he could remember what they were called. As they raced over to help the other Upwalker, Storm was still interested in the small box that smelt of prey and ice. He grabbed it by the tough handle thing and dragged it out of sight where the Upwalkers could not see him with it, he shot through the nearest bush. Big mistake, it was a bramble bush. He let out a loud _rrraw! _as a bramble thorn poked him on the corner of his eye, he let go of the handle as he heard more Upwalkers, there was no other choice. . .Storm grabbed the handle once more and then dragged the box into the bramble bush. He hissed as he smelt his blood being drawn as another thorn raked his leg. Suddenly he heard noises of outrage from outisde of the bush, the Upwalkers were so close to him now that he could see them through the leaves and branches of the vgitation. Then, out of nowhere, an Upwalker stuck its hand through the bush, carefully avoiding brambles. The giant thing was open and seemed to be ready to grap and drag him out. Never! Not without a fight! Storm lifted his paw, that was still unsheathed, and quickly swiped at the Upwalkers paw, he purred when the Upwalker yanked its forepaw back and he smelt blood, he also saw some of the thick, salty liquid on some leaves and thorns. _That'll teach 'em, _he meowed inside his mind as he grasped the box again in his mouth and heading out in the opposite direction of where he had attacked. The Uplwalker no doubt had a reason to attack again and he didn't want to be there for the revenge. He was relieved to see the Upwalker was bending over and looking through the bush like he was still in there. He darted for the trees, only to hear another Upwalker shout something and also hear -and feel- the heavy paw falls of the Upwalker running behind him. He was happy to know Upwalkers didn't have such stamina has he, but then again, he hadn't a thing to eat, so he to was slow and his stamina was way off. He looked back, just a peek, and he saw that the Upwalker had stopped and was staring after him for a while before turning to leave. Too bad he wasn't paying attention because he slammed right into a tree and fell down on the ground. The box flew from his mouth and landed somewhere far off, as he regained his balance and stood once more, he noticed that the big bump was a gift and a curse, a curse because, well, it hurt! And a gift because the box fell open. As he stared at it, it noticed that it was filled with ice, but he also saw fish. Lots of it. He hurried over to it, his stomach growled as he bend his head to take a bite. As he sank his teeth into the fish, he noticed how homesick he was, usually he would always hunt with Honey breathing down his neck, and he longed for her to share the kill at his side, as the fish went down his throat and into his stomach he suddenly felt awfully full. With his hunger lost, Storm pushed the fish aside and stood, shaking his pelt. Some other hungry animal could eat it. . ._and perhaps chase those Upwalkers away as well, _he thought as he eyed the fish he had bitten. "But I'll need to keep my strength up." He murmured to himself. And who knows when he'll get the chance to hunt again? He sat down and quickly gulped down the fish before he stood up again and walked around the box. He looked up at the sky, he would have assumed it would be moonhigh by now -considering the days are shorter- but the sun was still shining and the sky was still a light blue. Then his tail went stiff and his neck fur started to bristle as he felt eyes hot on his silver gray coat, he turned to look behind him. His lime green eyes scanned the area, but no animal was there. Frustration built up inside of him as he dug his claws into the ground. Was it Fawn? He began to wonder. The beautiful female had told him she was close. . .but how close? "Show yourself!" He snarled. Nothing. If he wasn't the only cat here some other would probably think he'd gone mad. He flicked his tail and sheathed his claws before resuming his walk deeper into the forest. With the dirt trail lost, he had nothing else to guide him but his survival skills and his heart. _Perhaps Fawn will appear in my dreams once more? _ He mused, yearning to smell her scent all around him again and feel his coat combine with hers. Suddenly his heart twisted in a way he didn't understand and his stomach weighed him down, every step he took seemed to be a struggle. _It cant be. . ._he whispered to himself. He hadn't felt this way in such a long time, not since- "I wouldn't go that way if I were you." A deep hiss growled. Storm, filled with rage, spun around to meet the harsh voice. A dark brown tomcat stood there with narrowed eyes as he looked at Storm and listened to his response to his warning. "And why not?" Storm asked in a deadly voice, his claws scrapping the dirt, wishing it was flesh they skimmed through. The tom shrugged, his eyes were a lazy pale yellow and his pupils were round orbs. "An Upwalker keeps his dogs there. Big ones too." He said, then he tilted his head to the side, looking Storm up and down. "Iv'e never seen you before. Are you from around here?" The stranger asked. Storm sheathed his claws and flicked his tail in dismissal. "So, is it like a. . .city there?" Storm asked instead. Confusion flickered over the toms eyes. "City?" He asked. Storm huffed an annoyed breath. "Lots Upwalker dens in one place? Bunched togeather, sort of?" "Oh! Those. No. Its just a den with horses and dogs. But," The tom flicked his tail towards his right. "If you walk directly that way you'll find one. Where ya headed?" Storm opened his mouth, as if he were about to reply but shut it again, he really didn't know. Amusment glittered in the toms eyes. "Listen, you seem like the kind of cat who woudn't cause trouble," He flicked his tail west. "I have a friend who'd love to keep you for the night. If you walk that way you'll see a little yellow den, when you spot a white cat tell her that Muddy sent you." He meowed. Storm stayed silent, looking west. He then looked at the tom, he knew that this must be Muddy. . ."Your friend's a _pet?" _Storm asked, his tail twitched at the end. Muddy shrugged. "We were all pets at one point. . ." Storm couldn't argue with that, his uncle and mother were both pets so that ment Storm, himself, carried their pet blood within his viens. "Anyways," Muddy sighed. "I must keep on traveling, see you around." He mewed before making a U turn and running off. Storm looked up at the sky, it still daytime but he had a feeling night will come faster then normal. He would need a place to stay for the night and he didn't have time to walk miles for miles insearch of shelter. Storm sighed as he started walking west. As his walk broke out into a run a scent of familiarity washed up his nose. And it got stronger as he sped through the forest. With his pads beating against soil, the scent was now clear to him. Roses. His running then slowed down into a breif trot. _Fawn. . .? _Storm suddenly felt eyes looking directly at him, he turned around, claws unsheathed as he bared his teeth at nothing. He seemed to have wondered into a small clearing where the pines made a circle but the narrow line that led onward had tree stumps everywhere. Storm dug his claws into the ground, this was abuse. No doubt, the Upwalkers came and cut down the trees. Totally losing intrest in the sudden feeling of being watched, Storm ran the clear stump trail. If an Upwalker did this, then that ment that one had to be near. The scent of roses were still fresh in Storms nose as he leaped a stumped and landed on wobbly paws, but he regained his paws quickly and sprinted forward as a new scent mixed with the old one. The scent of catnip washed up his nose as he spotted a small yellow den. He was standing on the end of this part of the forest, the ground below him came into a deep slope, then in the middle sat the small den where an elder Upwalker was sprinkling water on the plants that grew below ground. He jumped the , half jump, half slided. He used is claws as a brief brake as he skidded down. As he landed, he felt his claws tingle at the scent of catnip, but he had heard too many stories of how crazy that stuff could make a cat. Storm padded cautiously up to the den, trying his hardest to avoid any contact with the Upwalker. As he neared the yellow den Fawns scent of roses got stronger. It took him a while to notice two cats basking on a log near the Upwalkers small pond. Storm cleared his throat befor padding over, the Upwalker was too busy to notice his approach. As he neared the log the scent of roses was mixed with one of pine. One of the cats was an all white she-cat with dark green eyes and the other was a dark brown tabby tom with a white tipped tail, and two fire-amber eyes. The tom looked up, he, ofcourse, smelt a strange scent and wanted to know what it is. "Get out!" The tom hissed as he leaped from the log, making the she-cat jump up and look at Storm with dreary eyes. "Im Storm." Storm meowed as he dodged the toms pounce and looked at the white she-cat. _"When you spot a white cat tell her that Muddy sent you." _Strong claws raked his left ear and Storm flinched, his tail flicked angrily as he stared at the tom. Then something clicked in Storm, making him yearn to tear the cat in shreads, with his eyes raging with battle-fire, Storm leaped at him, the next thing he saw was the toms eyes huge with fright before he sank them into his chest. As the tom struggled, Storm yanked his blood stained claws out from his chest and moved it up to the toms throat. "Stop!" Came the yowl from the terrified she-cat. Storm blinked a couple of times, what was he _doing? _Then his eyes switched to the Upwalker, it was walking to the other side of the yellow den to deal with the other plants. Storm gulped but didn't remove his paws from their place. Instead he looked at the she-cat, she wasn't ugly. In a way she looked familiar, the gentle shape of her head, the way her tail curled at the end, and the way her eyes were wide and big, holding a sparkle at the center. . ."Muddy sent me." Storm meowed. "Leave, this is our territory!" The tom hissed as he struggled from under Storm's paws. The white cat blinked once, something sparkled in her eyes as she looked at the tom Storm had managed to pin. "Can you let him up?" She asked gently. Storm nodded and gently removed his claws from the toms fur, then he took one step back, giving him room to recover. "Im Dovie." The white cat said as she helped her companion up from the ground. The brown tabby was obviously a stray, where Dovie had a pink collar and a freshly groomed pelt, the tom had scruffy fur and no collar. "This is Bat." She finished. Bat shook his fur, making flecks of blood fly everywhere and said nothing. "What did Muddy send you here for?" Dovie asked. "I-I need a place to stay for the night." Storm said as he looked up at the sky, he could already see the faint shape of the moon as the sun slowly went down. When he returned his gaze to Dovie she had perked up, her tail went up high. "Great! The others will like to hear stories, if thats ok with you." She meowed. Bat snorted. Others? Storm cast a glance at the Upwalker, she was now sitting on some wooden thing and staring at something with black markings on it. "Dont worry." Dovie purred. "She cant hear, and she's blind in her right eye. She wont notice you, besides," She shrugged. "Ive been refuging cats here for seasons upon seasons," Then she flicked her tail at Bat, who was focusing on the birds that flew above their heads. "Bat was the first to come, but instead of leaving like most of them do, he decided to stay." She finished. Storm nodded slowly. "I'll let you meet the others." Dovie meowed, Bat rolled his eyes and huffed a breath before returning to his place on the log. Still, the scent of roses was hot in his nostrils as Storm followed Dovie around the front of the den and inside the small cat door that Storm could barely fit through. Mostly because of his tall height and strong build, not because he was fat. Inside was a mess! There was leaves everywhere, moss, feathers, bird carcasses. There was also a fallen log that fell from the roof, making a nice climbing place to reach the other logs that criss-crossed. This wasn't a place for a cat nor Upwalker. "The Upwalker out there doesn't come inside, she sometimes leaves bowls of food outside for us and then returns to her own den a couple paw steps from here." Dovie said, noting Storms look of shock. "Give it to me!" A tiny mew came from one of the rooms near. Dovie quickly padded to the next room, Storm slowly padded behind her. He was shocked to see five kittens playing with a moss ball, in a dusty room. Storm spotted Dovie as she whispered a few things into their ears and watched as all five of them ran past Storm and went somewhere else in the den. "Dont worry, they like strangers." Dovie purred as she walked past him. Storm knew that the tom named Muddy had sent him here on purpose, the little rat. Storm padded after Dovie, knowing he'd have to stay as far away from any cat as possible. . .

Dovie had introduced him to the eight cats that lived in the den. The five kittens,-who were all orange tabby's- Rover, Dandelion, Lily, Andy, and Sunny. An elder named Rock, who was an all dark grey tomcat with dark green eyes. And also a grey tabby she-cat with blue eyes and a white tipped tail named Marcie, -also the mother of the five kittens-. "I'll be out with my Upwalker if you need me." Dovie meowed as she trotted off and left Storm with the eight cats. "So, whats yo story, young'in? What made you come all da way here?" Rock croaked as he lied on his side and watched as two of the five kittens play wrestled with each other and the others cheered them on. "You wont believe me if I tell you." Storm sighed. "Oh thats cloud puff," Marcie purred as she reached for Sunny and began licking the bright orange tabby kitten. "We got dropped off in a box." Rover meowed as he crept up on Storms tail and pounced on it. Storm flinched as he yanked his tail from under the kittens tiny pricks for claws. "No, little kitten. My tail isn't a fly." Storm meowed. Rover gave Storm a shy smile before he ran for his mother. As Marcie stopped between her swift licks and stared up at Storm. "Alright, you should get some rest. And the same for all of you!" She added to her own kittens as they began pouncing on Rock. The old cat stood up and flicked Lily from his flank like he was swatting away a fly. "Young'ins," Rock snorted. "No stamina, but'll stay up all night try'in to tire out an old cat like me. Back when _I _was young-" "Oh no!" Andy whined as he pushed his head back, gazing up at the roof with his ears pulled towards his head and his eyes holding regret and sorrow. "Not another story!" Summer meowed. Then all the remaining kittens scurried off to their mother. Amusment sparkled in Storms eyes as he watched the youngest of the kittens, Dandelion, poked her mother with a white tipped fluffy paw and meowed, "Make the old cat stop, mommy." Rock growled before he stomped off into a dark corner and curled himself into a ball. Marcie soothed her young kittens with purrs and licks before looking up at Storm. "You might as well, sleep." She sighed. "With these five you'll be lucky to get any sleep at all." Then she fixed him with a tired half-smile before curling herself protectivly around all five kittens. Storm sighed. Then he looked around, it took him a while to find a really warm spot between a dusty plant ment for an Upwalker den and a pile of moss. As he put his head in his paws all he could think about was Fawn's soul scent drifting through the air, swimming around him like a fish in water. . .

Storm felt a heavy weight lie on him, his stomach was in knots, so much pain. . .so much sorrow. . .the desprate pleas for help rang through his ears. He lie there, curled into a tight ball, trying to drown out the terrible wails of help away. "Storm!" A terrified meow screeched in his ears. It was high-pitched, but full of agony and terror. If only he could remember who's voice it was. As he snapped open his lime green thin slitted eyes he saw blood trail down the mountain, trail all the way down untill it hit the stone ground with a very loud, and slow _boom! _"Storm!" Dear, cats of the world, there goes another one, but this one was deep and aggressive, Storm arched as another scream exploded out of nowhere, followed by the scent of blood. "Wake up!" Wha. . .? Something hard hit his flank, some animal was poking him. "Leave me alone. . ." Storm moaned, shutting his eyes. "Go away. . ." Then the voice gave way to a vicious hiss, making Storm jump with his eyes open wide. A very handsome and tall white tom stood there, his eyes were amber and his nose was pink, and in that white coat Storm could see swirls of very light grey. "Follow me!" The tom yowled through the screams. Storm hesitated, could he trust this stranger? Was he really real? A wail of pain tore through the skyless night as more blood dribbled off the mountain sides and splashed down to the ground. The tom growled before shoving Storm to his right and herded him to a dark opening. "Move your paws!" The tom panted. Storm, still cautious, ran for the dark opening, but stopped once again, when a giant oval of black and purple outlines suddenly appeared. "Walk through it, and hurry!" The white tom growled, Storm shook his head quickly. "Uh, uh. No way!" He yowled. All of a sudden dark shadows crept from the mountain walls, red eyes were blood thirsty as they crept up to them on four long, steady paws. It took Storm a while to notice the shadows were dogs, and the alpha of the dog Pack had red glowing eyes that shined at the center, he growled at any dog that tried to hurry past him. From the look of his long leags, pointed ears, and short coat, he was a doberman. The strange tom snarled at Storm and shoved him the rest of the way, it wasn't untill Storm was shoved into the portal did he hear the distant, deep scream of the stranger. All of a sudden Storms vision went blank, and he felt utterly at peace.

Comfy stalks of soft meadow grass swam around Storm's limp body. Even though the screams and wails were no longer near, Storm could still hear them ringing in his ears. Something rough and wet ran against his ear in a soothing motion, his fluffy silver paws curled inward as he purred. "Are you ok?" The soft voice meowed. Storm opened his eyes, he smelt the scent of dry blood, as he looked at his tail he noticed bite marks, but they didn't hurt. He huffed a breath as he stood. A paw slammed against his back and forced him back down. He turned his head to snarl at the animal who had attacked him. But once he saw those two beautiful green and blue eyes he settled down. "Fawn." He greeted with a purr. "Hello, Storm." Fawn meowed as she licked up a bundle of herbs and chewed them up. "What happened?" Storm asked as he stared at his tail. Fawn spit out the herbs and spread it on her paws before she gently dappled the bloody teeth marks on his tail. "You- You visited a place on accident," Fawn meowed. "In the end it got you hurt." Storm searched her face for emotion- anything! But she hid her feelings so well she looked as if she didn't know he was here. "A cat saved me." Storm sighed, slowly shaking his head. As the herbs settled on his bruises, they started to tingle a bit, but not so much to hurt or burn. Fawn looked at him, her whiskers twitched as she gave him a quick, short nodd. "That was Blizzard." She choked. "He was the Sage of strength before you. . ." Her voice trailed off and her eyes were cloudy. "What happened?" Storm managed, tucking his paws under his chest. "He had the same dream as you, Storm, about the place you visited. Well that place is called Ferinex. Its a very bad place, it was created by the kin of the leader of the Shadows, Blackheart. . .you saw the dogs, yes?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. Storm nodded. "Well, those dogs are his warriors. They do all his dirty work. Many seasons ago he led the Sages to believe he was gone forever, but then. . .they found out that he couldn't die. . .well, he could. But. . .the only way to kill him would be a nice, sharp bite in his weak spot. But the Sages never knew what it was. . .so many Sages past. Blizzard was a brave Sage of strength too, he didn't care what the cost was, he would do it with no questions asked." She chuckled. "But?" Storm prompted. A look of sorrow spread across Fawn's pretty, cream and white face. "But the Sage of healing, Sage-" Wait. . .Sage, the Sage of healing? "-Thought his ambitions to get to the top had overcame his loyalty to the rest of the Sages and their ruling over the Clan they had to rebuild. And, he was right. Blizzard tried to kill Blackheart by himself but failed. Back then, Blackheart had gained the souls of too many dogs. And as I said, they did all of dirty work. The alpha of the dog Pack, Slash, slaughtered him." A deep shiver went through both Fawn and himself. Then Fawn shook her head as if trying to shake away the memory, she pointed with her ears toward his tail. "All you need to do now is lick the herbs off, then you'll be fine." She murmered. "thanks." Storm meowed as he stood, his muscels were sore but his tail felt a tad better, atleast he could move it now. "So, about finding you. . .are you sure your living?" Storm asked as she herded him deeper into the meadow. Fawn stayed silent for a bit. "You've found my kin." She meowed. That didn't answer his question at all. "What?" He growled. Fawn looked at him, her long whiskers gently stroked the air as they swerved. "Dovie. She's kin of my kin." Fawn shrugged. Storm rolled his eyes. He had always known the scent of roses was too strong on Dovie. Maybe Fawn had ment for him to find her kin? "Dovie isn't a Sage, dont worry." Fawn purred before he could ask. "But she was ment to help you. . .do you trust her?" Fawn suddenly asked, she had stopped walking and was meeting Storms gaze with emotionless eyes. Storm thought back, when he had first met Dovie she was just as kind and gentle as Fawn was, and her scent made him feel like he was protected, like nothing could harm him. . .but, he couldn't just trust a cat, they barely knew each other. She could be trying to plan something against him at anytime. But he had to be careful with his words, because Dovie and Fawn are kin, no doubt, Fawn will take offense. "Why do you ask?" He meowed instead, the look Fawn gave him was blank, as if she was talking to an entire different cat, like she talked about this before. "In this journey your loyalty will be pushed to their limits. You must determine who you should trust and who you shouldn't." Then Fawn blinked her eyes a couple of times, recognizion clouding confusion. "So. . .there will be others making this journey with me?" Storm meowed. When Fawn nodded every fur on his spine lifted up. Fawn stepped closer to him, for a heartbeat, her soft, long, luxurious, fur brushed his slightly short, smooth, blood stained fur and everything went still, silent, he felt so at peace, he felt that everything was ok and he could do whatever, easy as blind mouse for prey. Then she pulled back, he felt cold and lonely, stuffed inside a shell like a frightned snail. "I know it'll be hard for you, your a loner at heart," Fawn meowed, soothing his soul. "But this is the path you must take to save whats left of the Clan." Then she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, calming herself. Storm stood there, too suprised to move. Usually he pushed every other cat away who tried to get close to him, so why hadn't he pushed Fawn? When she reopened her eyes a whole new glitter of hope shined through the pine green and ocean blue optics. "Fawn?" "Yes?". "What lies instore at the end? What will happen to you?" Storm managed. A slow, sly smile spread across her face, showing perfect white fangs ment for hunting. "I'll be fine." She purred. "I will always walk in your dreams. Even when you pass on I'll still be there." Storm nodded, she ment what she said and she said what she ment, the glitter in her eyes only brightned as she went on. "You are the Sage of strength, Storm. You'll need a trusty cat like me to walk in your head and guide you. You have no idea what your doing, remember?" Storm laughed. "I would think of myself as the Sage of hunting, considering how good I am at it." He purred. Fawn shook her fur, shaking hidden scraps of leaves and twigs away, the amusment dawned away from her eyes to show a new seriousness. "It'll be dawn soon, Storm." She meowed, then she turned around, padding a few steps before flicking her tail for him to follow. Storm quickly followed her into a line of bushes, on the other side was nothing but a dead end. . .well, a cliff, actually. Fawn was sitting on the edge of it, she was looking beyond the distance, at the rows of hills and maybe much, much more. "You'll be traveling far." Fawn meowed, flicking her tail towards the distance. "You'll have to face new challenges." Then she turned around to meet his lime green gaze. "I'll do everything in my power to keep the Ferinex animals away from your soul, Storm. It isn't your time to die, yet-" Yet? A shiver ran up his spine. "-I'll do my best." She finished. Storm nodded, atleast she was trying and, besides, he couldn't live forever. "I'll find the other Sages. But where do I go then?" He meowed, thinking ahead. "You must go meet the Five Sages, Storm. You have to follow the way to the mountains." Then she dropped her head so it would sank low to the ground, he saw a massive shiver run through her body as she arched her back and let out a wail of agony. Shocked, Storm took a step forward, but Fawn bared her teeth and told him to stay back. She fluffed up to twice her size as she opened her eyes, her gaze was blank as she looked at him through narrowed eyes. "Fawn? A-Are you ok?" He asked. Fawn was silent, still. She eyed him for a couple more heartbeats before she blinked softly. "Yes," She breathed, a purr echoing her honey coated meow. "Im fine. But you must leave now." In an instant, dizziness filled the air, Storm felt a rock land flat in his stomach as he fell to the ground, the scent of roses washed over him, watering his eyes at the delightful scent. His vision was blurred as they seemed to roll in the back of his head. The last thing he saw was Fawn towering over him and blinking, her gaze filled with emotion as she watched him fade into the waking world. "You can do it, Storm. I know you can." That was her perfect mew as his vision darted into darkness. Storm awoke, he looked at the hole at the top of the ceiling, it wasn't daytime yet but it was close to dawn. The other cats were still tucked away asleep, and the soft rythemic breathing of the kittens filled the air. Storm huddled closer into the corner, the shadow of the Upwalker den plant cast across his silver face as his lime green eyes wondered over his surroundings once more, he tucked his paws under his chest and sighed, this was an impossible task for one cat. . .

Chapter 3

Fawn sighed as whats left of Storms soft silver fur faded into nothing as he went back to the real world, when everything was gone, she straightned up. She had ment every word of promising Storms safety. She knew within her heart that she could let Storms rein go on and on untill nothing was left of his body but an elderly meow. She closed her eyes, then she unsheathed her claws and scraped them against the rock that made up the cliff, her whiskers tickled as a bright light shone within her eyelids. She opened her eyes, in a split second she was in a complete different area, this terrain was dark, depressing. The cave walls oozed blood and the distant screams and wails of agony seemed to ebb closer at the scent of a new soul. Fawn tasted the air, she was looking for one scent in particular. She sniffed and smelt around, for some reason she couldn't find- A shiver ran down her spine by force, her claws dug into the cave stone floor as she went suddently still. The scent of rotting flesh and blood washed over her, making her stop every nerve in her body from reacting to the horrible deadly threat. Soon, a stiff tail ran along her flank, followed by the tsking of a tongue. _Tsk tsk tsk. _"My, oh, my, what a suprise." A voice meowed, full of cheer, but also full of threat. Fawn shrugged the tail away and quickly turned, her claws were unsheathed and ready for combat if it came to that. There, infront of her, was Blackheart himself. Blackheart was a feircly battle-scarred tomcat, his fur was all black, exept for two white front paws. His eyes were originally amber but since he spent so much time in Ferinex, they had descended to a deathly red with a thin slit in the center. "Blackheart." Fawn breathed. Blackheart gave Fawn a lazy smile, a deadly sparkle in his red hot gaze. "Fawn." He purred. "You barely visit anymore, its so nice to see an old friend," Then he flicked his tail for her to follow. "Come, come. I'd like to share a starling or two with you." Before Fawn could say 'no' Blackheart was already padding deeper into the cave. Cautiously, Fawn followed slowly behind. As she wondered into the cave remembrance came into her mind. This place was called Cave of Cursed Souls, but most animals call it, Lonely Cave because not many show up here. A shadow was on the cave wall, it looked straight at her, waiting for her to walk over there so the owner of the shadow soul could take a quick bite out of her flesh, not gonna happen. As the cave parted into two paths, Blackheart was sitting in the middle of the two choices, two starlings at his paws. Next to him was a massive white tom with light silver markings, his fire amber eyes were haunted as he bit down on a freshly caught shrew, Fawn noticed wounds on his shoulders that were still sort of fresh. Blackheart smiled at her and motioned her to come forward. Fawn took two steps forward before she stopped dead in her tracks as a shadow moved in one of the caves. A doberman appeared a second later. _Slash! _ His gaze was unfriendly and his tiny tail was unmoving. His gaze was alert as he stared at Fawn, but seeing that Blackheart didn't mind her, Slash turned to his leader. "Kai is ready to take the next step," Slash woofed to Blackheart.. "He has mastered his strength and stealth and I think his rank is to become assissin." Blackheart was silent, his gaze was blank as he watched Slash, after what seemed like seasons, Blackheart nodded. "True. He did well going against Feather. . ." Blackheart mused. "Very well." Slash nodded and backed away, but not without giving Fawn his best, 'maybe not today, maybe not tommorow' look. "Here." Blackheart meowed when she was sitting infront of him and the white tom she had recognized to be Blizzard. He had already finished the shrew and was licking the crumbs from his whiskers. Fawn studied the starling, she didn't trust the prey that ran around in Blackheart's forests. "No thanks. I had a dove on my over here." She growled. Blackheart took a bite from his starling, when he swallowed he nodded. "Fine." Then he straightned up, raised a paw, and licked it, the white part seemed to be stained with dry blood. "What has made you stray so far away from your precious Sages, Fawn?" Blackheart growled, his tone was nothing but deadly. Fawn tried not to show her anger as she studied Blizzard, there was one thing she hadn't told Storm about this handsome tom. When he had died, Blizzard had become a demon-cat, forced to live under Blackhearts control. "I request a cat as off limits for your hunter-warriors, Blackheart." Fawn meowed, no tone in her voice. Blackheart choked, then he stared at her, his thin slits became thinner. -As if it were possible-. "What do you mean, 'off limits'?" Blackheart growled. Blizzard stood up and turned towards Blackheart. "I'll be leaving you both to your conversation. Slash says that two of the pups are ready to learn the basics of dodging blows." And with that, he turned and padded down the tunnel where Slash had dissapeared. "Storm. The new Sage of strength. He doesn't yet know how far he can push his powers and he also doesn't know what will make him weak and not-" She stopped as intrest sparkled in Blackhearts eyes. "Not that I would tell you." Fawn snarled. Blackheart shrugged. "Can't hate me for trying." He mewed. _Ive always hated you. . ._she thought. "So, I came to Storm in a dream tonight and he told me your Pack nearly tore him to peices. I had to sit there and treat his wounds so dont tell me its a lie!" She hissed. Blackheart blinked. "Im not saying its a lie, I know its true," Then he shrugged. "One of my youngest hunters told me she smelt a new soul in the Dark Mountains and offered to send Slash down to investigate. I didn't see how it could do any harm, so I allowed. it." Fawn went silent, listening with pricked ears. "Now Im gettinig news that a soul has escaped alive, took me a while to notice that the blood in my Dark Mountains contained the rare sparkle of gold that only a junior Sage has. . .ofcourse, even I know a full blooded Sage, whom has gone through with the ceremony of drinking the Lion's Blood would have golden blood. Thus, making them part of the Golden Blood Clan. . ." Then Blackheart gave her a smirk when he seen her suprised face, he bent his head to take another bite of the starling. "How much do you know about us?" Fawn wondered outloud, half to herself.`He swallowed and ran his tongue over his lips before he shrugged. "We're not that different, you know. As for the junior Sages, they drink the Lion's Blood, when ever my dogs and cat souls become a part of a rank in my Pack, they drink either the Tiger's Blood or the Wolves Blood." Then he sat back on his haunches and sighed. "I cant remember the last time a took a soul for myself." He meowed. Fawn was about ready to get up and leave but when she heard the honost tone Blackheart was giving off she stopped and listened, _maybe he wasn't so different from the rest of us. _loud growling and snarling came from one of the tunnels, the left one, followed by hissing and spitting. Blackheart yowled, it sound like something between half cat and half dog. The loud noise made all the vicious sounds turn into a whimper. "How on earth am I suspose to have a conversation out here if you all are screaming and howling like a bunch of badgers throwing a fit? I mean, really." Blackheart snarled, his ears drawn back. "I think I should go. Ive done all I need to." When Fawn stood, she felt her back crack like she had been sitting down for ages. "Yes. But remember that I can't make up Slash's mind however I own him. If he attacks your precious Sage, its under his own control. Not mine." Blackheart meowed. But there was a dangerous edge in his tone, something that no cat who hadn't provoked a thing should hear. "What do you have planned?" Fawn choked. Blackheart smirked. "Not that I would tell you." He smiled. Fawn's vision was forcefully blinded as wind pulled against her cream and white, silver flecked fur. She closed her eyes tight as a weight landed on her back, when she opened them she was infront of the Leaders' Cave in the Golden Valley, where the Golden Blood Clan had camped out. Fawn's heart was thumping. She had to warn the Elder Sages about Blackheart!

"Bet you cant catch me!" Rover giggled as he swerved out of sight behind a welting bush. "Bet I can!" Lily meowed happily as she followed behind. Storm lied down beside the garden and watched the two kittens play, his tail flicked silently as it flowed from side to side. "Stay close!" Marcie yowled after them. "Kittens!" Bat snorted as he yanked his tail from Andy's mouth, the tiny kitten hissed but didn't even try to attack Bat, he knew who was dominent around here. Instead, the kitten ran along to its mother. "Dont like them much, young Bat?" Rock purred as he raised a grey paw and licked it roughly. "Never in my lifetime have I seen such rude, annoying, loud kittens." Bat snarled as he stood up tall and ignored the angry hiss from Marcie -who was sitting by the pond-. Storm's ears flicked back and forth as he listened to the conversations around him, his lime green eyes were blank as he stared at the birds pecking on the ground a few feet awaay from them. "Catch it!" Summer purred as she flung a hunk of moss at her sister. Dandelion got into a suprisingly perfect huntress' crouch before she leaped up in the air and snagged at the moss with one tiny claw and slamming it down, her paw rested proudly ontop of it as all the kittens in the litter gathered around to praise her. Impressed, Storm watched for Dandelion's proud reactoin, but all the shy little kitten did was crouch low and dart off. Storm supressed a sigh, since when was he able to be impressed? "Hi." A familiar meow purred. Storm quickly turned his head the other way, just to see Dovie staring at him with her head tilted to the side. And so it begins. . ."Greetings." Storm meowed. "How are you enjoying your stay? Are you going to be leaving soon?" Dovie asked as she sat down. Storm could hear Bat snort as he turned his back on both of them, chin and tail high as he went to go finish a shrew he had caught earlier. "Thats the plan." Storm sighed as he bent his head and rasp his tongue over his shoulder. "Oh, I saw Muddy this morning," She meowed, her ears twitched as Storm told her to go on. "He said that you're a very nice tom, and he would have loved to get to know you better," Then she shrugged. "Muddy travels alot, but he always comes back in the end." Storm was barely listening as Dovie's scent of roses washed over him, she was more like Fawn then any cat here, the scent, the attitude, no doubt they were kin. "Dovie?" Storm meowed. Dovie raised a paw and licked it. "Hmm?" She purred. " "Do you have any other living kin?" The question just poured out of Storms mouth, but he needed to know. "My father lives a few moons away form here, and I have an uncle that lives a whole season away." Then Dovie tilted her head as she eyed Storm with young, wise looking, eyes. "Why do you ask?" She meowed. Storm slowly shook his head before standing up and looking at her. "Just a thought. I should be on way." Storm mewed. Rock was now standing as well and stretching his old anctient bones. "Wont you stay for a little more while? Its great to have company like you around." Rock croaked. Amusment glittered in Storms eyes. "Company like me?" Storm purred. "Well, o'course! Your young, a talented hunter, your brave, and you dont snap at an old feller like me for telling stories about my old seasons of a younger me." Rock mewed. That was true, Storm couldn't get enough of Rocks tales, and he had grown to like the old cat, he was talented also, he was a skilled hunter and he was the first cat for Storm to make friends with here. "We'll miss you, Storm." Marcie purred as she came up to him and rubbed her flank against his, behind her Storm seen the bundle of kittens as they ran up to Storms paws and gave started licking them and saying their farewells. "I seen your pounce, little kitten." Storm purred as he lowered his head to Dandelion's level. The little she-kitten looked as if she was about to run away, but before she could, Storm raised a paw and placed it on her tail so she couldn't get away. "Your a very skilled hunter," He continued. "One day you'll be able to catch all types of prey. Mice, shrew, starling, lizards, toads-" "Really?" Dandelion meowed, her ears going flat on both sides of her head. Storm chuckled. "Really. Now while Im gone, you'd better practice." He purred. Dandelion's eyes sparkled as she stood upright and smiled up at him. "I promise, Storm! I'll be the best huntress I can be for my mummy and siblings." She announced before running off. "Since when are you the kittens' favorite? They barely know you!" Bat growled as he stomped up to Storm and gave him a glare that didn't even hide the loathing the tom felt for Storm. Luckily, Storm didn't care, he grew up in a place where no cat liked him, it was something like this actually. Exept he didn't really know his mother that much, and his sister drowned, and then there was his friend, Bojingle. . .is she still alive? He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he almot forgot to answser his so called 'question'. "Its probably because I spend time with them, you should try it sometime." Storm retorted. Bat's eyes blazed as he bared his teeth. Dovie was at Bat's side as she pressed up against him, then she retreated from Bat to lick Storms nose. "Farewell, my friend. I'll miss you for always." She meowed, she said the last part under her breath so Bat wouldn't blow his tail off and take it the wrong way. "Good-bye." Storm whispered back. "Wait!" Lily yowled. Storm tilted his head to the side and waited for the little kitten to say something. She whispered something to her companions before running into the Upwalker den and then returned a minute later with a plump chipmunk, they dragged it over to Storm and Lily looked up at him with big green eyes. "You didn't touch your morning kill, so, I just thought you might need your strength." Lily meowed. Storm smiled at her. "Your right, I didn't eat this morning, now, did I?" Storm purred. He heard Bat snort behind him. He ignored the stupid brute's reaction. Rover was the one who shook his head, along with Lily, Dandelion, Andy, and Sunny. "Alright. I'll eat, but then Im gone." Storm meowed. Honostly? It was nice that they cared, he hadn't really had any cat care for him before. The kittens all purred when Marcie praised them for being nice. Storm lied down and enjoyed his chipmunk, as he sank his teeth into it he could taste the sweet juices mix and dance on his tastebuds. He felt the burning eyes lie on him as he continued to eat, after another swallow he looked up, only to see Bat staring at him through slittled, burning amber eyes. His threatning stare seemed to say, _the sooner you leave, the better. _He returned the stare with one of his own. Then he focused on Dovie, she was talking to the kittens in such a low voice that he could barely hear her words. Then Storm heaved himself from the ground, perhaps the sooner he left would do them all some good. The hostility level will drop, and he could finally be alone. "I think I need to leave now." Storm murmered as he trotted over to Dovie. The white she-cat nodded, her dark green eyes were emotionless as she looked at him again, she understood. "Dovie," Storm meowed. "Do you know a cat named Fawn?" When Dovie shook her head Storm sighed. "Well, maybe you should visit your father, he might have something to say, you'll be needing to know one day." Storm mewed. "Who's Fawn?" Dovie asked as she shook her head again. "Its better I know now." Storm could feel the burning eyes of Bat lie on him. The kittens that werre once playing with Dovie's tail had ran off to go play with Rock somewhere on the otherside of the Upwalker Den, and Marcie was napping a little ways off. Storm took a deep breath, she was right. Now was as good a time as ever. . .*My cousin. . .* The voice of Fawn was echoing in his mind. _What? _Storm was confused. *Tell her about me, Storm. End her wondering, now. She's always known that I existed, but her whole life has been nothing but lies. She needs to know. . .* Storm wasn't sure how Fawn had wondered into his mind, but he shrugged it off, he could ask her some other time. "Fawn is your cousin. Oldest I think," Storm started. Dovie had a confused look on her face, but her ears were perked as she listened. "Last night, Fawn came to me in a dream, she told me that you were her kin," As Storm went on, he told her about the very first time he and Fawn met and the about the prophecies, everything. When it was over peace replaced confusion in Dovie's wise gaze, he knew that somewhere in his heart, that this cat had the heart of Fawn, she just didn't know it. "Well, it explains the way you slept. You were murmering things when I went back inside to check up on you." Dovie meowed, half to herself. For a minute, Storm actually thought she believed him. But the disbelieving growl from Bat had shooed the thought away. In an instant, Bat was standing nose to nose with Storm. Both toms' claws were unsheathed, tails flicking to and fro in anger, fur fluffing. "Stop filling her head with that stuff!" Bat snarled. Then he turned his head toward Dovie, who was standing beside him. "You dont actually believe, this fool do you?" Bat asked. Dovie was silent, she was staring at Storm with wise green eyes. After a while, she closed her eyes and sighed before saying, "Yes, I believe him." But before Bat could protest she continued on. "I always knew that there was a purpose in what I was doing here, saving the lives of cats and all. And now I know." She pressed her nose in Bats fur. "I know you were trying to protect me for all these seasons, but Im not the one who needs protecting." Then she rested her gaze on Storm. "He is." Storm was too focused on Dovie's words he didn't notice Marcie creeping her way beside him. Marcie's gaze swept from Bat, to Storm, and finally, rested on Dovie. "I know you and I haven't known each other for that long, but I care for you just like any loyal cat here. If what Storm says is true, I would go with him." Marcie said. Storm looked at Marcie, she was staring back at him. "It is." Storm choked. "I know it is." Bat still snorted. Dovie eyed Storm for a moment longer. "Alright," Dovie meowed. "I'll come." Bat snarled at Dovie then. "Oh, no your not!" He hissed. Storm was shocked. _No! _He didn't want this to happen! She wasn't even part of the prophecy! *Deal with it!* A sharp hiss sounded in his head. *She's all you got, plus she knows the territory better then you ever will. She's lived here ever since she was a kitten.* Bat stared at Dovie "If you think I'll let you go with this-" He looked at Storm through narrowed eyes before turning his gaze back to Dovie. "-Stranger then your dead wrong." Dovie stared back, her eyes were serious. "First of all, he's not a stranger, and second of all, he needs me, I know the territory better then any of you know your own tail." Marcie eyed Dovie. "What about your Upwalker? She'll surely miss you." Marcie meowed. Dovie's eyes were full of care. "She'll be fine. She adopted a new kitten just yesterday night." Then Bat slowly shook his head, then he looked at Dovie, his eyes were full of love and effection. "Dovie, I cant let you go alone." He choked. Storm knew how Bat must feel about Dovie by the look he gave her, when Storm looked at Marcie, he was about to ask if they were mates, but the look Marcie gave him was sad and secretive. No, they werent. Bat obviously felt for Dovie but Dovie didn't feel the same way back. Dovie looked at Bat, her eyes were blank. "This is _my _choice, Bat. Not yours." Then her eyes were burning in fury. "And if you were a true friend, you would be happy for me, this is something I truely want to do, and Im trying my best to actually do something." "But you _are _doing something!" Bat protested. "Your saving the lives of many cats by keeping them safe here!" Dovie didn't answer back. "Theres nothing I can do to stop you is there?" When Dovie said "n", Bat sighed, then he looked at Storm. "Then Im going, too." _Uh, uh. Nope! This is where I draw the line! _*Oops did not see that coming* Fawn meowed. Dovie looked softly at Bat. "Thank-you." She murmered. Storm was about to protest but he looked at Bat. The poor tom couldn't let Dovie go, even if she didn't love him back. Then he looked at Dovie. She still thought of them as just friends. How could he break apart true love? "Fine." Storm sighed. Fawn owed him so much for doing this. "Dont worry, Dovie." Marcie purred. "I'll take care of every other cat here." Dovie bowed her head to her friend. "thank you, Marcie." She meowed back. When Storm looked at Bat he saw his that his eyes were clouded with unreadable emotions. "We should leave." Storm meowed, hearing the tiny wails of the kittens drawing closer. "Right." Bat said, clearing his throat. Then Bat looked at Storm through slitted amber eyes. "Where to, Storm?" He grunted, almost a growl. Storm eyed him, still, he didn't feel so safe with Bat looking at him as a foe, if they were in this togeather then he's just going to set some ground rules. Later. "Fawn told me to go to the city-" "The city?" Bat growled. "Thats plenty of dawns away!" Dovie ran her tail over Bats mouth. "To get to the city, you have to cross Bumpy Hills," She said calmly. "I'll travel with you as far as you need me to go." Storm remembered Bumpy Hills that Fawn was looking at in his dreams, _that must have been Bumpy Hills. _Storm realized. He blinked a few times, then he nodded. "Good-bye." Marcie meowed as she ran her cheek along Dovie's flank. "See ya later, Dovie-gator." Marcie choked out. By the sound of her voice, Storm realized that they must have said this plenty of times before. "In a while Marcie-dile." Then both cats pulled back. "Lets go." Dovie said, trotting to the front. Bat cast another glance at Storm before padding after Dovie. Marcie gave Storm a good-luck look, before turning around and stopping aleast two of her kittens from pouncing on Storms tail. Storm sighed and followed behind. _Fawn had better have a good explination tonight. . . _

Storm padded beside Dovie as she watched Bat quickly jump onto a nearby log. The sun had stopped shining by the time they got to their destination, ony the moon, big, round, and bright, shined through the night sky. Dovie and Bat had led him to a small space good enough to camp in, he had offered a different direction and which he had found a rather large, abandoned fox den but Dovie had said, "No, its too much of a risk. We'll head by the direction of the slowly moving river just a tail's length from here. Then we'll rest by a nearby area." So here they were, tired, paws aching. And Storm still couldn't get over the fact Bat smelt like a wet dog. "I'll gather up some moss." Dovie announced. Bat looked up at the sky, little sparks of stars appeared throughout the sky, but one shined so bright that Storm thought it could be something else, never in his life had he seen such a star. "So soon? Its just past dusk." He meowed. Dovie shrugged, a gently lift to her soft, small shoulders. "Alright, you can scout another mile or so and report back later." She growled, then she turned and stalked off into the trees, her tail twitching at its end. Bat looked at Storm. He opened his mouth to say something but Storm beat him to it. "I'll go help." He grunted as he hauled all of his weight from the patch of grass he had been lying on, resting his paws. Bat snorted. "Whatever, Im going hunting." Then Bats ears flicked and he did not move, they stood there, eyeing each other, green and amber eyes meeting each other in a deadly challenge. _He thinks Im going to make a move on Dovie._ Storm realized after a while. It was obvious Bat had despised him ever since they met but really? Storm sighed. "We need to talk." Bats tail flicked from side to side as he eyed Storm with feline consentration. "Yes," He growled. "We do." Storm perked his ears. He hadn't known Dovie long but something told him that she would't stray so far away from them, even if she wanted to. "Somewhere private." Storm said cautiously. Bat nodded, then he bunched his shoulders before leaping off the log and landing swiftly on four steady paws. "Follow me." Storm hesitated as Bat vanished into the trees, then he followed. The sound of dirt touching pad told him Bat hadn't wandered too far without him. Storm had suddenly froze when he walked into the clearing where Bat sat, chin high, paws squared. _He looks like a leader or something. . ._Storm quickly vanished the thought as he sat infront of him, his bushy silver tail curled around his paws and his whiskers twitching. The silence stretched longer then Storm had expected, but it was Bat who spoke first. "When we first met, I hated you." Bat admitted. Storm was about to reply something harsh but Bat cut him off. "But that was then, heck, I still do. But if what you say is true -about Dovie's kin, strange prophecies, and cats with magical powers- then so be it. Dovie obviously beleives it, so who am I do judge? I barely know you, nor talk to you." Then his tail drooped and his eyes clouded with sadness and worry. "What if something bad happens?" Bat breathed. "What if my protection isn't enough?" Storm stared at Bat, this tom was sharing his true feeling, literally pouring them out at him. Then he stood and walked smoothly over to Bat, he saw the tomcat wince when he sat beside them and when he trailed his tail along his spine, Bat stiffned. "Then I will protect her." Storm announced, he felt bold. Bat looked at Storm, suprised. "You would protect her for me? After everything we've been through?" He murmered. Storm deeply nodded his head. "I'll protect her _because _of what we've been through." Then Storm stood, shook his pelt and gave Bat a quick glance. "And dont worry," Storm growled. "Shes not my type." Bat hesitated before he nodded. Their eyes met again, and for the first time their wasn't a hint of challenge in his amber gaze, just a somber sparkle that tried to cover up regret. Storm felt utterly sad for the tomcat, he didn't usually fall in love with cats who didnt love him back, so he hadnt any advice for him, Storm dug his thick, sharp claws into the dirt in frustration. _Your gonna go far cat. _After, Bat had continued on his hunt. So Storm had time to catch up with Dovie, he followed her scent all the way to a tree that was pushed half way out of its roots, by the time he had found her, she was sitting down and staring down at all the moss she had collected. Storm approached slowly, the look in the white cats eyes was blank as she stared down, a gentle wind blew and the only reaction she had for it was a tiny flick of her tail. He crouched as he walked, making sure each paw step made a small noise and nothing less. Only untill he was side by side with her did she actually move. She blinked a couple of times and then looked up at him, her eyes were spreaded with wonder, and despite her young age, they shined with wisdom. "Are you ok?" Storm asked, confused. "Im fine." Dovie nodded. Storm wasn't no fool, he could smell the lie on her rather then see it in her eyes. "Will this be enough moss?" She asked, tilting her head to the side a bit to point with her ears to the pile of moss. "Its fine, Im going to keep watch for a little while, maybe scout ahead, I'll be back by dawn." Storm just couldn't be around her when she's like this -all mysterious and full of energy- next thing you know she'll be twirling her tail around her own neck and batting her eyeslashes trying to get him to fetch a mouse or two for her. Dovie nodded, narrowing her eyes as she bent her head and gathered some moss in her mouth. When Dovie vanished into the grove of hazel bushes, Storm lifted his muzzle towards the moon, taking a deep breath and opening his mouth so his scent glands could get a taste of the cool night air. Then the scent of trout washed over him, his whiskers twitched and his eyes narrowed as he cautiously followed the scent. Storm's whiskers twitched at the end and it was very hard to make out the other scent that was mixed with trout. It was tangy and rancid, like bad prey or something. As he followed the scent trail, he was aware of his own claws unwillingly sliding out of their sheaths. Storm narrowed his eyes into slits when he found it hard to stop walking. _Something is dragging me! _Storm raised his head, ready to let out a wail that'll make a badgers ears bleed, but his wail got caught in his throat -like something got shoved deep in his throat- and he was left coughing instead. After a while, Storm let go of the fight. The force led him to an old tree, the tree was so old, that the roots had began to sprout upward, the branches seemed to sag, waiting to snap, but the leaves were green and healthy. But by then, Storms pads were aching, and he smelt dry blood. But that was probably because on the way he stepped on atleast a moons worth of needles. Then, all of a sudden, the weight of the force dropped from his shoulders and he was left sprawling in the dirt, Storm moaned as his muscels started to ache, he felt like he had no more energy left to even stand. But the sound of many other cats whispering in his ear in perfect harmony gave him the energy to stand and, atleast, brush the forest rubbish from his fur. When he was all cleaned up, and the last of his dignity faded, Storm focused more on the voises. They didn't seem to be saying any real words, just whispering random things. The lovely sounds suddenly altered into a heart twisting wail of agony, his mind was suddenly turning back to his first visit into Ferinex. The wails were somewhat the same, the scent of blood no longer lingered in the air as Storm shook his head, as if trying to get rid of the bad memories and distant screams. "You have made them angry!" A high-pitched wail screamed behind him, the scent of roses washed over his nose as Storm swerved around. Fawn was standing behind him, her fur was as pretty as ever but it was see-through, he could see the trees and bushes through her, she looked ghostly. It freaked him out. In an instant, Fawn was infront of him, as if she could materialize, then she meowed something that got washed into the screams. "What?" Storm shouted at her, but by then she was facing the old tree, fur on end. Then she threw her head back and let out a wail of her own. The sound was some sort of a wild purr, the sound was so loud and sad Storm's ears ached to listen. As Fawn went on singing her wild song, the noise died down, only then could Storm see the tree's bark glittering. He eyed it suspiciously while he straightned himself up. When all of it was over, Fawn had stopped her singing and turned to Storm, her fur was still on end and her claws were deep in soil. "You mouse-brain!" She hissed. "You could have died!" Then out of nowhere, Fawn leaped on him, tackling him to the ground. Storm felt teeth tug at his neck and claws rake down on his flank. He hissed as he managed to free a paw from his own weight and then he unsheathed his claws and swatted them at Fawns ear. He heard Fawn hiss as the weight lifted from his body, when he scrambled up he admired how his claws glinted off the moonlight with a small dab of blood trecking down their long sides. He looked back up at Fawn, she had recovered from the small blow yet she lay crouched beside the old tree. _Great freshwater fish! _ Storm quickly sheathed his claws, Fawn had her paws tucked under her long cream colored fur and her eyes looked haunted, Storm saw a small shiver run along her body. "Fawn?" He echoed. Fawn didn't answer, she was looking at him, her eyes clear as the sky. When he tried to walk towards her, his flank felt as if ten dogs has been chewing on him. He winced, then a small sparkle brightned in Fawns eyes. Storm's flank burned like fire but he shook it off, padding towards his friend, he was aware of her pelt bristling. "Try and attack again," Storm dared, his own pelt on end. "And you'll see how much my anger reflects on me in battle." Fawn relaxed, and Strom relaxed his muscels. Why had she attacked him again? He slid his body beside hers and she pressed against him, he felt her shivering and he knew something was wrong. "Fawn," He murmered. "Whats wrong? Why did you attack me?" And then he waved his tail at the old tree. "And what was going on?" Fawn turned her head to pin him with a vicious glare, they were emotonless, all but the fire in her eyes. "Your an oaf," She snarled. Storm opened his mouth to retort but she pushed her muzzle so close to his that he didn't want to. She nuzzled him gently before pulling away and eyeing him with care. "Im sorry." She choked. Storm looked into her eyes and could almost see through them like the rest of her body but then again couldn't. "As am I." He bowed his head low to her, he didn't want to fight her, he hadn't wished to ever harm her. "I didn't know I could reach you fully in the waking world untill tonight." Fawn admitted, her eyes sparkling. "Not true, I heard your whispers." Storm pointed out. She snorted. "True but- I was so angry that I- I broke through the border, I guess. . ." Then her eyes clouded. "I thought only Sages could do that. But Im not a Sage, though a serve as Second Medic." Storm had a hard time keeping up what she was saying but he got a little of it. "Maybe the current Sages have given you the power to walk in the waking world," Storm shrugged. "You visit me in dreams all the time, and you whisper to me as well. Why should this be any different?" Fawn's whiskers twitched. Storm saw her gentle nature for what it was for the first time, the way she looked at him was so gentle, so full of love, for the first time he realized why her name was Fawn. "Have you ever been told stories as a kitten?" Fawn asked, tilting her head to the side a little bit. Storm felt shocked that she would change the conversation so soon, but he answered anyway. "My mother told me a story about how kittens who stray away from its mothers sight the Demon Dog would come and eat them." Amusment lit her blue and green eyes as she purred, "No, not like that. Ancient stories, about the past." Storm snorted. "My father got his head stuck in a snake hole when he was a kitten." Fawn laughed, it was honey coated. She shook her head, before looking at the tree. "When I was a kitten, my father told me that the spirits of dead cats always find their way to the forest. And become one with the trees. They generate from our feline past." When she turned back to Storm, he knew she had seen the confusion on his face. "All cats have a bigger cat inside. You, for instance, have the heart of a panther." Storm thought about that for a second. A panther was a black leopard in its unspotted form, they usually pad alone and they normally dont keep a mate for life. . .yep sounded like him. "Or like you have a heart of a lioness?" Storm purred. He felt Fawns pelt getting warm, his pads started to sweat. "Yes." She meowed. "Storm!" A deep meow broke up their conversation. The smell of pine drifted towards them. Bat! Storm turned back to Fawn, about to tell her to hide, but she wasn't there. But her scent of roses still lingered in the air and he felt her breath on his ear. *Go now, tonight I shall not visit in your dreams.* She mewed. Then he heard the sound of claws against dirt as her unseeable ghost padded away. "Storm!" Bat was running towards him, his mew was muffled because of a plump rabbit in his jaws. His gaze was full of delight as he slowed his running. "Thats a nice catch," Storm praised as Bat dropped it. Instantly, his tail shot up in the air and Bat held his chin up high. "Such a fat one this close to the cold season." Storm went on, eyes narrowing. "Where'd you find it?" Bat smiled as he eyed his catch. "Dead, by a fox den. Those filthy creatures are wasting prey so close to winter." Bats delightful tone went down to a grunt. "Cant you smell the fox? Its stale but noticable." Storm sniffed, trying to catch the fox scent, but all he could smell was Bats scent of pines. The scent of roses washed over him again. *A gift from me, to you.* Fawn purred. "Yes." Storm lied. Bat tasted the air. "Hm," He grunted. "Dovie must be near. I'll meet you back at the camping place, we'll all share it." Then Bat grabbed the prey and stalked back into the trees. Storm looked at the tree, he hadn't ever heard stories like these before, but he was intrested in them. That night, Storm had decided to skip his trip back to where they had camped, instead he caught a shrew of his own and slept by the old tree. When he awoke, he left the tree, but not before saying good-bye to the spirits in the trees, and he could have sworn they whispered back, "Good-bye, Storm. And good luck! Let our spirits guide you and light your path." But maybe it was all in his head. When he padded back into their small camp he saw Dovie and Bat sleeping close to each other but not so close that their pelts bushed, Dovie had her head in her paws and her small pink nose twitched as his scent pulsed through her nostrils. Bat was asleep on his side, his stomach was lifting up and down gently, his tail twitched. Storm saw the half-eaten rabbit a little ways off. A tiny purr got his gaze switching from the rabbit to Dovie's body. She was awake now, her eyes were soft as she looked at him. "Where were you? We missed you last night." She yawned, stretching her legs, trying not to wake up Bat. "I decided to sleep alone tonight." Storm whispered, then he shrugged. "Im use to being a loner remember?" Dovie nodded before she padded close to him. "I have something to tell you." She meowed. Storm could smell the exitment forming from off her pelt. "What is it?" He asked. "A cat visited me in a dream!" She meowed. Storm eyed her. "What did this cat look like?" Dovie tilted her head and thought for a moment. "It was a female cat," Dovie began. "She looked young, she had pretty cream colored fur with a white underbelly and her eyees were two different colors." She finished. "Did she have silver flecks on her white underfur?" Storm pressed. Dovie shrugged. "I thought they were just imagined, but yes." Then her dark green eyes shined. "She told me that she was kin of my kin and that Im doing the right thing by following alongside you. She also told me that everything you said was true." Storm nodded. "The cat you met was Fawn. She is, yes, kin of your kin. She walks in my dreams, also." Dovie's exitment seem to go on and on. "I still cant beleive it." Then a meow turned their attention to Bat. "Beleive what?" Bat meowed, had lifted his head up and was glaring back and forth between Storm and Dovie and then back again. Dovie looked at Storm, behind the exitment lay a questioning glance. _Should I tell him? _Her look seemed to say. Storm gave her a look that told her not to. "I- I was just telling Storm about the time we got chased by those dogs, remember? You hung by your tail like a bat, sort of, on the branch and fought the dogs with your front paws?" Dovie purred, it was obviously forced. But Storm had to admitt, that sounded impressive. But when he looked at Bat he could tell the dark tomcat didn't beleive that was true. Then Bat heaved himself up on his paws and stepped awfully close to Storm. "Did you enjoy the story?" Bat meowed, a hidden growl was in there somewhere. "Yes." Storm meowed in a deep voice. Rule number one, Storm thought as he made up rules in his mind. I _am the dominant cat. _ Dovie stepped in between the two hostile males, Storm had just started to slide out his claws, and the same with Bat. "Do you think we should keep going?" Dovie asked, looking at Storm. Storm hesitated before he slid in his thick, sharp talons and stood up straight. "Hunting might be a good idea at the time," Then he flicked his tail over to where the half-eaten rabbit lay. "Or would you rather eat whats left?" Dovie and Bat looked at one another, then Bat finally shrugged and sheathed his claws. "I dont care." He growled. Storm's tail twitched. "Then lets eat this rabbit," Dovie sighed. "We wont know if there is any prey left-" She looked at Bat, her eyes full of humor. "-Or if Bats constant snoring scared off all the prey." Bats eyes glittered his amusment. "I don't snore." He snorted, cupping her on the ear with a sheathed paw. Storm swerved away from the two cats, he wasn't in the mood for playtime. He lied down by the half-eaten rabbit carcass and lied one paw on its bloody flank and the other on the back leg, he unsheathed his claws and sank them into it as he tore a huge chunk of meat and fur, as he ate, he couldn't help but think of the long journey ahead. They would have to face winter soon, prey would be scarce, the cold would freeze them all, and many animals would be fighting for food. It took long enough for his two companions to come and share the prey.

After the rabbit was eaten, Dovie had suggested that they should follow close to the Dark Path, the Dark Path was a black trail that usually led to Upwalker dens and would soon lead them to the city. Storm let out a disgusted snort as they emerged from the trees and approached the Dark Path. "What a stink!" He growled. Bat shrugged, his eyes sparkled with amusement. "The Upwalkers drive their Metal Bears on it." He meowed. Confusion dotted Storms gaze, tilting his head, he asked. "Metal Bears?" Dovie -who was silent the whole walk, looked at the Path. "Yeah, those big, loud, scary things that never run off the Path. . .they barely come into the forest." _She means cars, _Storm thought as Bat flicked his tail towards the other end. "We need to cross it." He ordered. Storm narrowed his eyes. He had once knew a young tabby named Meeko, the stories around the forest stated that Meeko was out playing with his sister Bambina, when he slipped in the mud and landed infront of a car. When Storm went for find out for himself, he visited the old Upwalker den where Bambina and Meeko lived, she had confirmed the rumors. Therefor, crossing this path was deadly. "Couldn't we just walk from this side? I dont know about you two, but Im not looking forward to being- say, flattned into an Upwalker rug." Storm growled. He had known that Upwalkers had these things called a rug since he was a kitten, he and his mother would always sleep infront of the fireplace on the comfy rug her Upwalker had provided for the birth of her kittens. Bat snorted, he raised a paw, licked it gently before drawing it over his ears. Then he heaved out a sigh as he pointed with the ears up the Dark Path from there side. "If you go that way, mouse-brain, it leads to a certain part of the forest where the bears mark their territory," Then he gave Storm a wicked smile. "So you can either get mauled by mature female bears protecting cubs, eaten by a mature, territorial male bear, or run across this Black Path and make it safely to the other side- your choice." As Bat finished a car roared down the Path, the scent of smoke filled Storms nose, he saw Dovie gag, but Bat just sat there, looking ahead, not bothered by the horrible smell. "Anything that gets us away from here faster!" Storm managed. Bat shrugged, not even taking a look at Storm. Then he stood, looked both dirctions of the Black Path and then meowed, "On three, we all run togeather, we have to hurry before another Metal Bear comes." Two bright lights flashed from one direction, getting closer and closer untill the car roared past them. "One. . ." Bat started counting  
"Two. . ." "Three!" All three of them shot on the Black Path, it was cool beneath Storms pads, he despised the smell that soared from it, Storm ran untill he made it safley on the other side, then he turned, panting, to see if the others were coming. Bat had just hopped off the Path and was turning franticlly, then he swerved around and Bat hissed. "Dovie come on! You have to run!" As Storm eyes adjusted to the smell that that made his eyes water, he noticed that Dovie had stopped dead in the middle of the Black Path, a shocked expression on her face, she was crouched low to the ground, her eyes wide as the moon. She had dirt all over her white fur, that told Storm she must have fallen or tripped. Just then, Storms ears perked, the sound of a nearby car was like shreiks to him. She had to move! Now! "Dovie, you have to run!" Storm shouted, he smelt the fear-scent rising from Bat. "Uh-oh." Bat meowed. "Uh-oh?" Storm demanded. The car was now close enough to see, the bright lights flashed from infront and Storm knew that if they didn't get Dovie out of the Black Path soon, bad things were gonna happen. Then Bat bolted onto the Black Path, his speed was faster then any cat Storm had ever known, then, quick as a cheetah, Bat grabbed Dovie's scruff, the car was a tails length away. Bat, with wide amber eyes, ran a little back to Storm, then he made one strong movement, causing Dovies body to land safley on the other side, but at that same moment the car roared past them, making a bump before speeding on. Storm heard a wail of agony, then a big cloud of white ran past him, Dovie grapped Bats body by the scruff and dragged him to the other side. Shocked, Storm raced to meet her, Bats body was bloody and dirty, but Storm could still see his flanks going up in down in short fast breaths. "He's still alive." Storm meowed as he ran his tail confortly down Dovie's back, she nudged him off. "This is all my fault!" She whined, burrying her nose in Bats fur. "If only I hadn't hesitated!" Then he saw another car roar past. "Come on, lets get him away from here, we'll find herbs to heal him and hopefully he'll awaken." Storm meowed. Dovie took in a long, shuddering breath before she hauled herself to her paws and nodded. Storm walked closer to them, then he bent his head, sanking his fangs into Bats neck fur. He must have bit in too hard because he felt blood rush through his mouth. Storm managed to forget about being careful as Dovie helped him, letting some of Bats weight drop onto her while Storm let some drop onto him. Another car sped by; the smell grew stronger. Then both Storm and Dovie dragged his half-dead body into the trees. As Storm carried him, he couldn't help but think that this was his fault, and if Bat died he'd only blame himself. _I saw the car! _He thought. _I should have been the one to safe her! If only I'd gotten to her first. . . _ As soon as the horrid scent left Storms nostrils for good did he allowed themselves to drop Bats body. As he and Dovie eased him down he could tell he was still breathing. Dovie hovered over him, her eyes were mixed with many emotions, Storm knew -as he sat there- that the two cats must have gone through everything togeather. No wonder Dovie didn't think of them as more then friends! She thought of them as littermates. Brother and sister. Storm's lime green gaze landed on Bats body. "Perhaps you coud hunt? It'll probably take your mind off of him." Storm meowed. Dovie looked up at him, the sorrow that swam in her ocean eyes made his heart skip a beat. "What about you?" She asked, her voice was muffled and tough as if she hadn't spoken in many seasons. "I think I remember some herbs that might help." Storm mused. His mother had loved herbs, she had tought her youngest son, Storm, all about them, hoping it would save his life one day. Dovie stared at him. "Herbs?" She asked. "Just hunt." Storm growled. Dovie looked at Bat as though she didn't want to part with him, then she stood and stalked off. Tail dragging behind her. *Good Idea, Storm. Like some leaves and berries will heal all those wounds* Said the taunting voice of Fawn, Storm perked his ears, hoping Dovie had gone far and wasn't in earshot. "I can atleast try." Storm meowed after a while, hoping Fawn could understand him. A sigh echoed in his ears. He was releived to know that Fawn _did _understand him, for she answered, *Well fine, I'll help you. That big bloody wound might get infected, you might want to start picking some alder.* Storm sighed, he knew what alder was, he didn't like the smell nor the taste but she was right, if he chewed alder and applied it to Bats wound it would reduce swelling and help with infection, standing he went went to track the herb down.

Dovie had finished her hunting early and had caught him spreading alder on Bats wound, she had offered to help and Storm was grateful for her help. He didn't like leaving Bats body in the open, in this heat, animals would be underground or in the Ebony, so larger animals might be out searching for easy prey. So Storm had sent Dovie out for burdock, she came back a few heartbeats later with a tall stemed thistle with a sharp smell and dark leaves. Burdock. "Im suprised you know the plant." Storm had grunted. Dovie said nothing. The sun was now shaded by the clouds, they hadn't decided to move Bat out of the open because of his weight. No seriously, he weighs like two badgers! Bat lay on his side, his breathing had slowed in a calm way, but he still han't woken up. Storm now nudged Bats front left paw with his nose, it was bent irregularly but he had seen Bat sleep with his paw like that before. Then Dovie padded over with chamomile and comfrey. Comfry to sooth his wounds and chamomile to add to his physical strength when he wakes up. _If he wakes up. _Storm pushed the thought away, Bat was a strong tom, he would lick this off, no problem. "Spread the comfry on the wound on his shoulder, I'll start grooming the blood off." Storm mewed. Dovie nodded, stuffing her mouth with comfry and then spitting it on her pads before rubbing the paste gently on Bats shoulder wound while Storm dipped his head and started gingerly licking the blood from around the wound with the alder on it, he was very careful not to lick the gross tasting stuff. With rythemic licks, he eased his eay down to Bat's legs, the blood down there was dry and stiff, making the short fur on Bats legs stick up in all directions. Dovie, who had stopped the spreading picked up the chamomile and placed it a little ways off before coming back to Bats body and started grooming his tail and rear. When all was said and done, Dovie had decided to finish her hunt, the sun was still out, that was good. Storm went with her, but before they did, both of them dragged Bats body to a nearby bramble bush that was surrounded by a grove of pine trees. Storm opened his mouth and tasted the air, as did Dovie. Not only did Storm want to hunt, he wanted to see how well Dovie hunted. The scent of thrush and mouse washed over him. Storm looked at Dovie, she was still tasting the air. _Not so good at tracking. _Storm noted as he saw frustration glow in her eyes. "I smell thrush and mouse." Storm whispered to her. Dovie gave him a side-long glance, then she nodded. Storm tasted the air again, then followed the scent trail. The prey split apart a little way deeper into the forst. Dovie had decided to go for the mouse scent. So Storm followed the thrush scent. As Storm followed the scent, he was aware of the long-leafed plants he had never seen before back in the country where he had grown up in. A small tweet made his ears perk and his paws stop moving. Storm focused, he blocked out everything other then his prey, everytime he let bad memories get in the way of his hunt, he lost his meal of the day. The small, brown, songbird was standing in open space, confusion washed over him. The thrush was just standing there, plus, this close to winter, it shouldn't be out in open space, probably not here at all! Some birds fly south, do thrushes fly south? Storm growled low to himself._ Stop thinking off topic._ He thought as he bent down in a hunters' crouch, bunching his muscels togeather and leaving his tail low and out of sight. Then the thrush shook its head fast before staring directly at Storm. It was like it was saying: Come on, Im getting tired of waiting. Storm narrowed his eyes before he pounced, he let his muscels lay loose as he sprung in the air, his claws outstretched and unsheathed, then he crashed down on the thrush, it was a clumsy catch, he slipped on his own paws and flipped with the thrush in his jaws, his paws were flyinf rapidly through the air as he landed on his back. Storm grunted as he went down. Then he quickly rolled over, disgusted by the dirt and leaves being attached to her fur, he flicked the leaves off with his tail and then shook his fur out to get rid of the dirt. Then he looked around, hopefully no animal saw that, then he picked up his catch and retraced his steps to Dovie. By the time Storm had located Dovie, it was nightfall and both Dovie and he feared of night creatures preying on them while they slept. So they had to move Bats body from the bramble bush to a young tree Dovie had seen during her hunt. The tree looked sturdy and strong, but there was a deep gash at the bottom that would shelter them for the night. They placed Bat's body gingerly inside the tree. When Dovie had crawled in Storm eased himself out. Dovie shot him a questioning glace and Storm blinked. "Storm-" "Dovie," Storm growled. He wasn't in the mood for this. "A blind mother badger can see there isn't enough room for all three of us." His voice strained to stay calm. But he was tired, and he didn't finish off that thrush he had caught. "I'll sleep in one of the low tree branches." He offered. Before Dovie could object to it, Stor had dug his long, curved claws into the bark and started hauling his weight up the tree, with each lift his muscels felt as if he had been swimming for many seasons. As he rested one paw on a lower branch Storm used the other to lift his whole body on it. As he sat there, he scooted his rear up to the tree trunk just incase he fell, then he lied down. All of his paws sagged lazily off the branch as his chin rested on the hard bark. The real reason he hadn't wanted to share the make-shift den was because he still wasn't use to being with others as much as these two, he hated mature cats, they expect him to act more his age instead of who he is. He loved kittens because of that, huh, that was the main reason he hung out with Honey! As his mind wondered Storm found himself drifting off into a distance sleep, he loved the smell that tingled in his nose. . .

Something nice and warm lie under Storms paws, it was like kitten fur, but as storm opened his eyes he found himself gazing into Fawns eyes. She lay under him, it seems as though he pinned her down, but her claws were sheathed and emotions glittered in her eyes. Storm stood there, shocked. His grey fur gently stroked her siver dappled underbelly as he breathed, she seemed comfortable with their position. Storm opened his mouth, about to speak, but Fawn lifted a paw and swatted him on the nose. Storm weaved back, then he tripped on his tail and landed on his stomach. As he got up again he noticed that Fawn was up also, her eyes were blinking slowly. Storm eyed their surroundings. It was. . .different. They were in a cave, plants grew from cracks at the bottom and there was a giant nest filled with moss and feathers. Two boulders were pushed close togeather but between the dark cracks Storm could see the leaves of dock and smell the comfry, he knew there must be berries in there too because he smelt raspberry. "Fawn. . .?" Storm looked at her, confused. Fawn sat plainly with her tail swaying in the air slowly as if she were thinking. "Storm." Fawn meowed, it was a low whisper, Storm could barely hear it. Then Fawn sat up straight and swayed her tail around the cave. "This is my den," She meowed. "Your journey will end as soon as you hit the mountains, Storm. Then you go across to the other side and keep walking untill you see a calm meadow. I'll be looking for you and the others there to take you to the Valley." Storm nodded slowly, he looked at the entrance of the cave, it looked like a tunnel as if the den was made to confuse unwanted visitors. "Did you bring me here only to say that?" Storm grunted. His lime green eyes shifted back to Fawn, she was walking towards him on steady legs. As she drew closer he was aware of her eyes, they sparkled and were lost in thought. Then she stopped dead infront of him. "No," She breathed. She shut her eyes tight, then unsheathed her claws and dug them into the cave floor. "No?" Storm meowed, his tail twitched. When she opened her eyes Storm saw a rush of emotions and he saw Fawns eyes getting watery. He couldn't beleive what he was seeing, at the first glimps of her in that starry marsh Storm had thought of her as invinsible; that nothing could bring her down even though all hope was lost. But the cat that stood before him was completely different from the Fawn he had met. She blinked and stood straight and stiff. She held her chin up high and her tail swayed slowly as she spoke. "I have granted you time, the dog Pack will hunt you no more. . .for now." Storm eyed her through narrowed slits. "For now. . ." He echoed. Fawn nodded. "Blackheart says that he can only command Slash, but Slash will make the choice on his own time. He is the second in command after all." Storm nodded releived, he had forgotten all about the dog Pack attack for some nights, his wounds were healed and it didn't seem like much to worry about anymore. He lied down and tapped his tail beside him, Fawn willingly lied beside him. All that was important right now was him, he needed to relax. Storm gently ran his tongue over Fawns ears, starting their grooming. As he repeated the action, Fawn opened her mouth and licked his chest fur. They groomed each other for a good long while, and while they did Storm had time to ask her more questions about his role as a Sage.

Chapter 4

Darkness. . .nothing but pitch darkness. . .Dark Path. . .Metal Bears. . .bright light. . .hard surface. . .Dovie! Bat wiggled awake, his short brown tabby fur was full of chewed up plants and each movement he made made him yowl in agony. Night was upon him, as he looked up there were no stars, as he tried to look around and smell the air, there were no traces of Storm nor Dovie. He moaned, he would not give up, he had to find Dovie! He had to know if she was ok! Bat forced himself to stand, his muscels screeched in pain but he ignored it. As he looked around drearly he noticed that the trees were as tall as the sky itself and there was an light fog running through the terrain. A wild purr erupted from his right. Wincing, Bat turned around. A tall tom stood beside a tree, he had red eyes and white front paws. He nodded approvingly. Bats ears flicked as his claws slowly slid from their sheaths. The tom narrowed his eyes, stood up, and slowly walked over to where Bat stood. "Who are you?" Bat demanded. "Where is Storm? And Dovie?!" The tom smiled. "Their safe. . .for now." He growled darkly. Bat narrowed his eyes, bared his teeth, and his ears drew back. "If you put one claw on Dovie-!" His snarl was cut short as the black pelted tom ran his tail across Bat's mouth. He coughed, choking on fur. "Do you _really _think Dovie cares about you?" The tom growled, circling Bat slowly. "Ofcourse she does," Bat meowed. "We've been through alot togeather." Then he paused before meowing. "Who are you?" The tom came to a stop beside him. "Blackheart." He purred. "You can call me Blackheart." The bright moon reflected on his midnight colored fur, only then did Bat see the millions of battle scars on his body. He gulped, a cat with that many scars and still standing? He must be more dangerous then he appears. Blackheart continued on. "True, you've through alot. But what is with the sudden change of personality? Ever since that silver tom came into your lives everything got turned upside down." Then he sighed. "Shame. You were _so close._" Bats claws dug into the ground as he thought. Dovie _had _been acting strange lately. Always sticking up for Storm, padding by his side. Ofcourse, they slept close at night and Storm had told him that he wasn't intrested, but what about Dovie? Or perhaps the possibility that they were secret mates? Bat shut his eyes tight. "He wouldnt dare. . ." He snarled under his breath. He felt Blackhearts breath in his ear, "Oh he dares. . .he dared to attack you when you first met. . .to swipe Dovie right from under your paws and throw you aside like fresh-kill. . ." Bat opened his eyes and looked at Blackheart, how could he know such things. As if he read Bats mind, Blackheart purred, "I do my background check." Then he raised a paw and unsheathed his claws, they were long and curved. Much like his own. "Unsheath your claws and compare them to mine." Blackheart purred. Bat obediantly followed directions. Holding, up a striped paw he unsheathed his claws. They were identicle. Same length, same curve, same everything. "They're. . ." "The same." Blackheart finished. Then that wild purr came back. "You see, Bat, your mother was my sister. If I do recall correctly, her name was. . .Raven?" Bat blinked, if this cat was his mothers brother then that would mean he was his uncle. Blackheart wrapped his tail around his paws and continued as he, no doubt saw, the intrest in Bat's eyes. "Your father. . .um.. .Sam? Well, when your mother died giving birth to you, Sam named you Bat. He lied about your real mother remember?" Bat nodded. His father had him nursed by an old friend but as soon as he was able to eat prey they were gone. "I cant remember the name of that loner he had nurse you. . .Sandy. . .Prancie. . .?" Bat swallowed. "Nancy." He croaked. Blackheart nodded, a smile forming on his face. "Poor Sam. I had offered and offered to take you in and raise you as my own. But he was determined to leave your whole life a lie. And now, here you are, all grown up, having a pretty she-cat wrapped around your tail like a vine and this tom swoops in! Talking nonstop about prophecy's and myths. And takes her away from you." Blackheart then raised a paw and licked it thoughtfully. "Now, if it were me, I would have put that tom in his place." Then he stopped his licking to look Bat in the eye.  
"Wouldn't you?" Bat's claws gripped earth as he yowled in fury, battle-fire was rising inside him, ready to break and run through the forest. "Storm will pay!" He snarled, closing his eyes and picturing the silver tomcat under his claws, begging for mercy. Blackhearts purr rang in his ears. "Now listen carefully. . ."

"Storm!" A voice shreiked in his ear. Irritated, Storm flicked his ears. "Go. . .away. . ." He yawned. "Storm!" He recognized Dovie's voice and felt a sharp poke on his flank. He stirred away. Opening his eyes, he saw the pale blue sky, and green leaves. He was still up in the tree. He looked infront of him, Dovie was standing there, her fur on end. He slowly got to his paws. "What?" He snarled, arching his back in a stretch. "Its Bat! He's missing!" Dovie yowled. Storm narrowed his eyes into slits. "What do you mean?" He growled. Dovie started breahing hard. "When I woke up, he was still beside me, I went for a quick hunt and when I came back, he was gone!" She then looked at her paws, her tail lied limply off the branch. Storm nodded his head slowly before he opened his mouth and scented the air. Bats scent had lifted upwards during the light wind a few heartbeats ago, and it was faint. Storm sighed, then he held out a paw under Dovie's chin and held it up, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Dovie," He began. "He must have gotten up and left, the scent is faint. Even if he thought we had moved on without him and went to go find him, he would we halfway back to that Dark Path by now." Dovie's eyes grew wide. "We musn't leave him out there!" She whined. "He's fatally wounded and cant hunt for himself! He'll die!" Storm removed his paw and dug his claws into the bark of the branch. He closed his eyes, deep in thought. _If Bat left at sunrise he could be anywhere, and they didn't have time to follow his scent trail. _"Maybe it was a sighn. . ." He meowed outloud. Dovie's ears flicked. "A what?" She mewed. Storm look up, seeing worry in her dark green gaze. "A sighn. From Fawn perhaps. . .or maybe the Five Sages themselves." He mused. "I haven't had any other dreams!" Dovie whined, her white fur was fluffed with worry. He'd never seen her like this before. . ."Fawn has only came into my dreams once!" She continued. "And it was only because she needed to confirm your statement!" Just as she said this Storm felt a strong scent of roses, but this one wasn't Dovies. It was more. . .tangy. Dovie obviously smelt it too, her whiskers twitched as she scent the air. "Must be another cat nearby. . ." She meowed. "You bet!" A cheerful purr yowled from below them. Shocked, both Storm and Dovie looked down with their backs arched and fur on end. It was Fawn. Realizing she had startled them, Fawn's grin faded into a smile. "Sorry!" She purred. Relaxing, Storm flicked his tail for Dovie to follow. Before turing towards her to see if she was ok. Storm dug his claws in the bark and made his way down. Sometimes sliding, sometimes putting one paw after the other. When he reached the bottom, he felt Fawns fully cream fur greet him. "Storm. . ." She purred. "F-Fawn?" Dovie's meow had brought him back to the waking world. He blinked a few times, concentrating on his surroundings. Dovie had made her way down and was standing on the oppisite side of Storm and Fawn. Her eyes were full of shock. Fawn bowed her head low towards her kin, her fur still brushing Storm. "Yes," She purred, lifting her head up to meet Dovie's gaze. "Im really here." Storm smiled. He had wondered what it was like to feel the comfort of a she-cat again, other then Honey ofcourse, but this wasn't like old-time friendships. He dipped his head and ran his tongue between her ears, making it shine and dazzle in the morning light. Dovie, who had calmed a bit more, looked from Fawn to Storm and back again. "Bat," She murmered, remembering what she and Storm had been talking about just a few heartbeats ago. Fawn, who had been nuzzling Storm's chest fur in greeting, stared at Dovie once more. Her eyes were darkned and they sparkled with something Storm couldn't read. "Bat," Fawn meowed, that one word held so much anger, so much worry. "Is gone. He chose Dark over Light and now he's gone." Then she switched her gaze towards Storm. "Im sorry. I couldn't stop it. By the time I found out Blackheart was walking in Bat's dream lastnight, I couldn't break the invisible barrier." She meowed. Storm nuzzled her. "Its ok. I dont expect you to fix every single thing that goes wrong on the journey." He purred. "What?" Dovie asked. Storm quickly looked at her, her voice was full of emotions, such as shock, worry, curiosity. Storm quickly explained everything that went on. About Blackheart, Slash, Feriex. "And lastnight Blackheart walked in Bat's dreams while he was 'out'," Fawn meowed. "He was somehow able to manipulate him and he crossed the border from Light to Dark. Im so sorry, Dovie, I couldn't enter Bats dream and stop it." Dovie, who was listening with perked ears, held her head low, her eyes were sad. Then she took in a deep breath before saying, "If Bat chose Blackheart over the Five Sages then he was never loyal at all." Then she cleared her throat, looking up, she looked better, but her whiskers drooped with sadness. "I would rather keep traveling, with you, Storm." She meowed. Fawn perked right back up. Storm nodded. "Very well," Then he added. "It'll be hard. Lots of danger and random cats. Maybe a few fights. . ." Dovie nodded. "Then teach me, Storm." She meowed. Storm studied her for a second. "Huh?" He asked. "Teach me how to fight, I would like to serve in your Clan as a warrior. To fight against the Dark, in to stand by your side." A new rush of pride stirred up in Storm, Dovie had Fawn's heart, her courage, her everything. How could he say no to the kin of the cat he loved? "Ofcourse." He meowed. Dovie smiled, her tail curled at the end, much like Fawn's. "Oh and before I forget," Fawn meowed. Storm caught her gaze, her eyes went from perky to regret. "Fawn. . .?" He meowed, touching his nose with hers. "Storm. . .for this, I am very sorry. . ." She murmered. "Whats wrong?" Dovie asked, standing and taking a few steps towards her. "Its Honey. . ." Fawn meowed. Her meow was so low that Storm barely heard her. "Honey? Whats wrong with Honey?!" Storm demanded, that battle-rush filled him again, making him yearn to feel flesh under his claws and to taste the blood of another cat in his mouth as he bit down on its neck, killing whomever. "H-Honey. . .Honey has also crossed to the Dark Side. . ."

Blackheart sat calmly with his black tail crossed neatly over his paws, his whiskers twitched as he gazed down at his followers. He had gathered much more cats and dogs and he was ready for a war, but the war wouldn't come yet. His red gaze flickered from the crowd to where Slash sat in a dark corner, a look of pride overclaiming his usual strict gaze. _Don't be so proud of yourself, old friend. _Blackheart thought, narrowing his eyes. Then he raised his tail for silence, the chatter and conversations took a while to ease down but it did. As the last of the cats stopped talking, Blackheart raised his voice. "Welcome to the meeting!" He purrred darkly. They were in the heart of Ferinex, a big grove of pines were placed in a tight circle for miles, here, it was great for training new members. "First, we will start by greeting a new group of cats who decided that the Dark side is much warmer then the Light." And with that, he flicked his tail for the line of cats to come forward. All of them stepped forward at once, at their movement, the rest of the dogs and cats greeted them. The group held some of the cats Storm had encountered on his journey, he didn't need Storm or Fawn running to these cats for help if they needed alliances. The group contained Muddy, Bat, Honey, and two young cats that had grown quickly, Rover and Dandelion, from Marcie's litter, they were still pretty young but old enough to start training, what, like seven moons? He was proud of his choice. Dandelion showed great promise of strength and her brother showed good promise of stealth. If he sees sighn's of strength in any other of Marcie's litter, he'd be sure to pick them off for himself. He waited for he crowd to die down on its own, when it did, Blackheart spoke again, but louder this time. "Since our new arrivals are now part of our Clan and Pack, each need names that would be much more to their ability," When he seen Rover and Dandelion shift their paws, he added. "We dont want you getting picked on by the dogs because your names are too soft, now do we?" Then Blackheart jumped from the fallen tree log he had sat upon, then he padded up to Muddy. This was a cat that Blackheart didn't trust. It took alot to get him to come to Ferinex, and he had no aggressions against Storm. But he knew that Muddy felt something for Dovie at one point, but that would also affect his progress in the battle, what would this solid brown tomcat do when in combat with Dovie? Clearing his throat, Blackheart nodding towards Muddy. "This cat, because of his remarkable since of smell and hearing, will be now known as Sami." He meowed. Muddy's face was stern as if he was about to disagree, but he held his tongue. _Ah, _Blackheart thought. _He's tame. . ._ Then he moved on to Bat, who was sitting proudly the whole time, with his chin high. _This one, right here._ If Bat made it through the battle then he would take Blackheart place and become Leader of the Darkness. He was getting older, and even immortality fades on some occasions. "Because of your strength I would like to name you Tigerfang." _Tigerfang_. . .the name suited him. Sharp teeth to match his sharp ambitions. Tigerfang's tail shot up in the air. Blackheart moved on to Rover and Dandelion, the two young cats sat close togeather. He had once felt the warmth of a litter mate before. . ."Rover, because of your ability to blend with the night, dispite your bright orange pelt, I want to name you Brightshadow. And you," He looked at Dandelion. "You are good at hunting, and you will make a fine warrior, your name shall be Shira." Both cats smiled at their new names. Blackheart nodded at them and then went to Honey. "Honey," He greeted with a smile. Honey was mature now, the reason he had gotten her was to use her as a weakness against Storm, knowing she had been like a kitten to him. Honey smiled back and nodded her head. "You, also, show promises of a great huntress, from this moment forward your name will be Amari." As he finished, the crowd around them broke out in cheers; shouting their new names. Blackheart flicked his tail for Slash to come over. Slash, stood and slowly made his way over to Blackheart. When he was beside him, Blackheart pointed with his ears towards Tigerfang. "He still needs the proper training of a Ferinex warrior, would you take him in as your appentice?" He asked. Slash studied Tigerfang, Tigerfang studied Slash, he usually let the cats train the cats and the dogs train the dogs, but he knew that Slash would enjoy training the kin of his own leader. "Mmm." Slash finally said. Tigerfang eyed Blackheart. "We'll see." Was the only thing the dark tom said. Blackheart knew the two of them would have hostility issues but they'd get along sooner or later. "You may start his training whenever it suites you best." Blackheart meowed, turning to his long termed friend. Slash nodded. "Alright. But I still have to train Bone so we'll only be training at dawn perhaps." Slash replied. Blackheart's peircing red eyes wandered over to Tigerfang, his eyed were dazed as if he were in his own little world. "How about I train him at dusk then?" He offered. Slash shrugged. "If you ask me, you have way too many apprentinces right now, but do whatever you'd like." Blackheart unsheathed his claws and dug them into the ground. "I didn't," He growled. "And besides, Cry and Owl are almost ready to become full warriors and drink the Tiger Blood, while Oscar, Bonnie, Thorn, Star, and Iris still need training." He watched as the meeting departed. Sami and Amari went with their shared mentor while Shira and Brightshadow went with theirs. He hated splitting the two litter mates up, after all they were stronger togeather, but they needed seperation or they'll depend on each other a little too much. Tigerfang was still day dreaming, just waiting for some animal to wake him up. "What if," Blackheart raised a paw and pointed with a thorn sharp claw towards a german shepard with a long scar running down his flank, pink where the fur never grew back. "I give Clyde three of my apprentinces. How about Star, Bonnie, and Thorn." Then he pointed to a silver tabby tom with only one eye. "And give Dexter, Cry, Owl, Oscar, and Star." And finally, he pointed to an all white cat with no tail, only one ear, and a body bruised with battle scars. "And Talizora, I give Iris-" Just as he finished this sentence, Slash interupted. "No. Iris is scared to death of Talizora, she'll be too shocked to get any training done." Blackheart just about striked him across the face, but he was right. "Fine. I'll continue training Iris and I'll take Tigerfang as well. Better yet, they can train togeather at dawn." Slash nodded, turning his attention back to Tigerfang. "A little distracted isn't he?" Slash growled. "He won't be that way for long." Blackheart meowed, then he roughly nudged Tigerfang on the shoulder. "Tigerfang! Focus!" He snarled. Tigerfang blinked a few times before his amber gaze steadied on Blackheart. "Sorry." He stammered. "You'll be training with me at dawn and then at dawn you'll be with Slash. You will be training with another of my apprentinces, you'll meet her next dawn." He flicked his tail. "Go back to Lonely Cave and get some rest." He growled. Tigerfang nodded and started quickly padding away. Slash narrowed his eyes at the dark tabby tom. _Do you have suspisions, dear Slash? _He thought as Slash's red gaze remained on the spot where Tigerfang exited. "Slash! Blackheart!" Came a young voice. Blackheart quickly gazed behind him. A young mutt was padding towards them with Blizzard at his side. When they they stopped infront of them, they bowed their heads respectfully. "What?" Slash asked, annoyed. "We have wonderful news!" The mutt, he had recognized to be Vixen, woofed. Blizzard nodded, his tail curling in delight as an evil smirk spreaded across his face. Once he was a loyal Sage of strength untill Blackheart took his soul for his own, and once inside the darkness, you become apart of the darkness, but then again, sometimes it doesn't work. "Indeed it is!" Blizzard purred. "Well?" Blackheart growled. "Its Darkness, the Sage of Speed. She is dead." Vixen replied. Blackhearts eyes widened. "How did that happen?" He mused. Blizzard licked his lips as if he were staring at a juicy peice of prey. "Her golden blood faded," He replied gleefully. "We all thought that was just a rumor, that her golden blood was transforming into a deathly black." He continued. "But it wasn't a rumor after all! She died recently, in her sleep." Slash looked pleased, for he nodded with a satisfied smirk on his face. When one of the Sages are to die, their blood becomes a jet black color, which was one of the strangest things Blackheart had ever heard. He flicked his tail dismissing his two warriors. When they had left, and the remaining cats in the clearing padded off to either train or rest, Blackheart purred, his claws dug into the soil in delight. Slash nodded, as if understanding what he was saying. "Indeed." He replied. Slash stood, he suddenly looked alert, stubby tail stiff and ears pricked. After a while, he relaxed then he woofed, "I'll be going now, I have many things to do." As he bowed his good-bye's, Slash padded calmly away, leaving Blackheart in the clearing by himself. He waited untill he could no longer hear Slash's paw steps before he purred, "I do as well."

Storm got into a low crouch, his tail was stiff and unmoving, not too high to give himself away, not too low to make him lose his balance. As his whiskers twitched, he drew one paw after the other, moving with his prey. When the mouse stopped to sniff at a dead oak leaf, Storm pounced. He could feel flesh scrape against his claws and his jaws bit down on fur. When he felt his prey stop struggling he sighed and dropped it between his paws. It had been atleast two dawns since Bat's disappearance and he had noticed a deep depression in Dovie. She barely spoke a word, her whiskers drooped and she dragged her tail along everytime they tried to cover up new ground and everytime he looked into those dark green eyes. . .he saw sadness beyond the point of sorrow. He was worried, but when he remembered that he and Dovie were suspose to start their battle training this dawn, that made him happy. He could finally test his strength as a Sage! He'll have to take it easy though. Quickly, he scooped the mouse up in his jaws and padded towards he and Dovie's camping grounds. He noticed long before Bat had left how quickly the terrain changed, and the scent along with it. There seemed to be less trees and more stumps, they also had to cross a lot of Dark Path's and the scent smelt strange, tangy like the Dark Path. Dovie had commented that it ment they were somewhat close to their destination, and that they'd be in the city soon enough. As he trekked on, Storm noticed little specks of white falling from the sky. Sometimes they touched his pelt, sometimes they didn't. He soon saw the meadow they had camped in. In the heart of the meadow sat a bush well beyond its growing point, it was so large that it could fit atleast five cats. When they had first arrived the grass was freshly green but now he saw some pale yellow, he also saw apple trees. They were everywhere. Sometimes Dovie would climb the bark of the tree and make an apple or three fall for them to share. Storm pushed his silver body inside the bush, the leaves tickling his fur. Inside, lay Dovie, curled up into a ball by herself. The look of her, so alone like that, made his own heart. For he had Fawn, Dovie had no cat to spend the remains of her life with. As he dropped the prey at his own paws and looked at Dovie's body, determination swelled up inside him. She wasn't alone. As the Sage of Strength, he'd make sure she wasn't. She'd have him. And Fawn, ofcourse. He knew they'd get through his togeather, like they started it. Suddenly her nose twitched and her eyes slowly opened. As she woke more fully she stood and stretched her back, he heard cracks as if she'd been lying in that position for a while. "Back from your hunt all ready?" She yawned. Storm looked through the leaves and up at the sky, the stars were staring to fade and he could see that the nightly dark blue was slowly changing into a light blue with a yellow and orange mix. "Its nearly dawn," He meowed. "Im right on time." Dovie said nothing more, but she padded forwards and picked up the prey Storm had caught, knowing he'd caught it just for her. _She looked better this morning, _he observed. She looked more lively. As she bit down on her prey, her eyes ran over Storm. Then she pulled back and she made a funny face, sort of like a mix between a snarl and a smile. "Have you been eating prey without me?" She growled playfully. Storm's eyes widened as he bent his head to look as his stomach. It was slightly round and the fur looked droopy, same with the fur on his tail too. As he looked at her again, he snorted. "Its my winter fur," He meowed. "Its coming in." As he said this Dovie took another bite of her mouse. "You grow long fur when its winter?" She asked, suprised. Storm tilted his head. It was true, his fur grew longer then normal when it was close to winter, it was how he adapted. "What about you?" Storm flicked his tail at her tail, it had fluffy patches on it that made it look a bit like kitten fur. She purred. Storm liked seeing her like this, back on her paws with the same determination as when he had met her. "Ready to start training?" He asked as the warm morning sun stroked his silver pelt from between the leaves. Dovie nodded, swallowing another mouth full. "Ok." She answered. Storm led her to outside the bush. He had decided not to train in the tree's today, she looked like the kind of cat who likes more open terrains, though it gave Storm the chills to be out in the bare wild like this, he knew she needed some experiance. Storm lied his tail gently on her back, a signal to tell her to stay where she was, then he padded a little ways off before he turned to look at her. Intrest sparkled in her eyes as she watched his movements. "Ok," He began. "Lets start with some basic dodges." Then he threw himself at Dovie, giving her no time to think. In an instant she w as under his paws, for a second, Storm had to fight his claws from peircing her delecate fur. She landed with a loud _oof! _"Why didn't you move out of the way?" Storm growled, getting off. Knowing that he could fight like this without drawing blood made him sick and irritated. "I didn't know!" Dovie whined, getting to her paws. Storm sighed, slowly shaking his head. "Ok, leap at me. Like Im prey." He meowed. Dovie quickly got into her huntress' crouch, then after a while of watching him, she leapt. Storm instantly dodged the leap with no struggle, after she had landed clumsily on her paws. Storm frowned. "Too slow." He commented. Dovie turned and looked at him, wide-eyed. "But you told me to stalk you like I stalk prey!" "I said _hunt_." He growled. "_Hunt _me like you hunt prey." Then he added, "You waited to long to pounce, do you think your rival will wait for you to get in the right position or wait for the right time to attack? They wont." Dovie nodded. "Fine." She growled. Storm's eyes sparkled as he saw her eyes shine with determination, he knew she wouldn't give up. "I'll attack you again." He meowed. She nodded. Storm got into a hunter's crouch, his tail low but balancing him. Then he leapt, Dovie quickly drew to another side and Storm landed gracefully into the grass. "Very good!" He purred. Dovie smiled, her tail shooting up in the air at his praise. "Now try again." He leapt again, and in that same instant, Dovie dodged his leap. "Nice." He nodded as he turned around. Dovie blinked, suddenly sadness filled her eyes. "Bat would have loved this." She meowed. Storm sighed and drew closer, then he genty poked her with his nose. "Dovie," He meowed. "You told me that you would stay loyal to the Five Sages-" "I am!" "-but how can you stay loyal when you are still connected to Bat? Remember, he chose Dark over Light." Dovie sighed, then she nodded. "I know. Its just that. . .we've been togeather for seasons now! When I first met him, he was nothing but a stray pet, looking for somewhere to spend the night. And the next thing I know, I start seeing him around the gardens where I live and. . ." Her eyes were suddenly clouded as she stared off into the distance of her memories. "Dovie, its time to let him go." Storm meowed as he brushed her cheek, in a friendly way. Dovie nodded, then her ears perked as she stared at Storm. "Lets practice some more!" She purred, jumping up. "This time I want to learn _fighting _moves." Storm purred at her comment. One minute she was sad and the next she was happy? What happens when she's angry? Storm stood, and got into a low pouncing position. "Ok, Im going to leap at you, and you need to defend yourself. Try scratching me from above, since Im jumping at you." Then he shrugged. "Anywhere you can get a good patch of fur." Dovie looked unsure, she sheathed and unsheathed her claws, letting them gently scrape against the ground. "My claws unsheathed?" She asked, confused. Her voice was full of worry. Storm stood straight and rolled his eyes. "No, with your claws unsheathed." He growled. Dovie looked up at him, her eyes seemed even more confused. "Huh?" Storm flicked his tail for her to forget it. "But what if I hurt you?" Dovie whined. "Do you think a warrior will care if he hurts you, Dovie? No! He'll just attack you and kill you on the spot. All you need to learn is how to defend yourself." Dovie still looked unsure. "What if it was Marcie in danger?" He asked. "Or her kittens?" Dovie's eyes grew round at his meow. Storm got into his pouncing position again. "Ok. Pretend we're back at the den with Rock, Marcie, and the kittens. Now, pretend that, while they were sleeping. I unsheathed my claws and started attacking Marcie and took the kits. So Im rushing out of the den with. . . lets say. . .Sunny-" "No! Not Sunny!" "And you spot me, what would you do?" Instantly, Dovie got into her hunting crouch and bared her teeth at them, then she unsheathed her claws. Storm narrowed his eyes into thin slits as he leaped, instantly he felt claws rake the side of his shoulder and he yelped in suprise before he landed on the ground. Dovie's claws were sharp for such little pricks, compared to his own, at least. He hauled himself up and turned just in time to see Dovie leaping at him, her claws unsheathed and her eyes looked calmly wild. Storm kept his claws sheathed and swatted her away, she fell right at his paws and he was astonished to see her get right back up, as if his blows didn't affect her. As she leaped again, Storm had decided to let her get this one. Dovie toppled him backwards and they started rolling through the meadow grass. He felt her claws dig into his flank as they continued to roll, the ground seemed slanted somehow. Then he felt his body roll faster and faster and he knew that they were rolling down a hill. When he tried to focus on Dovie, he knew that she was having a hard time hanging on, for she dug her claws into him even deeper. Storm growled low in his throat, and then he grunted before he unsheathed his own claws and dug them into her shoulders. He heard her let out a loud wail of pain before he pulled her closer to him. When he was sure she was secure, he closed his eyes and tried to roll them into a ball before the hill came to an end. His back and side burned. He felt new bruises on his tail as it was repeatedlty crammed in by his own weight and then wacked against Dovie's body. "S-S-Storm!" Dovie stamered. Storm ignored her, trying to look at their surroundings, this was no hill, more like a deep slope. It seemed to go on and on. Storm, pulled one of his paws from Dovie's body and raked his claws against the earth. Soon, they slowed down. As they came to a stop at the end, Storm noticed that Dovie's white fur was now dirty and brown, plus, he could see scraps of leaves and moss on her pelt. She looked confused and dizzy as she lied on her back. Storm hailed himself up, aware of the burning bruise on his flank. Her claws were sunken in so deep that he could feel blood dribble down his stomach and legs from both sides of his flanks. "What. . . .happened?" Dovie breathed. Storm still ignored her, instead, he looked up the slope they had slided down, it was far up and they needn't go all the way back up there. After a while, Dovie regained her breath and rolled on her stomach and started sniffing herself. "Yuck! Look at me!" She whined, staring in disbeleif at her usual snow white pelt, which was now brown. Storm held back a chuckle, though he knew that it showed all over his face. "Its not funny!" She growled. Storm smiled. "My apologies," Then he raised his head and opened his mouth, a sweet scent poured into his glands and he knew what it was at once. "I beleive there's a river or something close to here. I can smell fish. After we eat I can see if pushing you inside will do any good." Dovie's eyes grew into thick slits. "You'd better not!" She growled playfully. She scrambled to all fours and tasted the air just like he did. Storm blinked as he drew his eyes around their surroundings. There were very few trees, and the trees that _were _there were spaced out, and there were very few bushes and each bush had red berries on it, as the scent sank into his glands and nostrils he had remembered his father, Tux, telling him something about them. "Now listen here, Storm." His father muttered. "These berries aren't like the sweet; juicy berries your mother fed you back at her Upwalker's gardens." Tux's black and white pelt was neatly groomed as he pointed with his tail towards three red berries that lay at Storm's paws. He was only just about to take a bite. "They're deadly and dangerous. Their called holly berries, I take it you've seen them hanging around your Upwalker's den around the cold seasons, right?" Storm nodded, his lime green eyes wide. "Do not eat these." His father's voice became stern and serious as he continued, his tail flicked with each word. "Even if you are starving in the forest. These berries will only bring you death right after you swallow." As Storm returned from his memories, he was aware of Dovie's curious expression as she slowly padded towards one of the nearby bushes. "No! Stop!" Storm snarled. Maybe his snarl was too loud, or maybe too aggressive, but it made Dovie stop right in her tracks and stare at him with big eyes. Storm stomped over, and herded her away from the bush. "What do you think you were doing?" Storm growled. Dovie's eyes were as big as moons. "I asked you what they were!" She protested. "When you didn't answer I thought I'd try them out," Then she shrugged, swiping at the ground with one of her front paws. "They didn't seem so bad." Storm took in a deep breath to calm himself down. He understood her. She wanted to know what it was and since no cat bothered to teach her, she decided to learn for herself. But didn't she understand how dangerous that is? What cat would walk up to some unknown berry and just eat it? After a while, Storm nodded. "Im sorry. They're called holly berries. Dovie listen to me, they are very deadly, no matter what the cause is, dont ever use these berries, _ever._" As he spoke Dovie stared at him like she was a kitten learning something new. "My father told me lots about them. You're not suspose to eat them. They'll kill you." When he had finished talking, Dovie nodded and stood up once more. "Sorry, Storm. I didn't know." She meowed. "Its ok." Storm nodded. Then he tasted the air again and caught another whiff of that sweet scent. "Come on, we'd better go find out where the fish is. And if its a river or something. We should get there before any other animal does." As he said this, he padded off like nothing happended. The soil here was alien to his hard pads. It was dry and a pale brown kind of color. And he hated how the sun basked right ontop of them, reminding him of the very little trees there is. As he walked, his ears flicked backwards to hear if Dovie was keeping up. He heard some off beat padding. Hers and his. Comfirmed of her where abouts, one of his ears turned left and the other right. As long as they were wondering through unknown territory, he didn't want them to come across any unwelcome visitors. As he scanned the area once more, Dovie's paw steps quickened untill she was padded side by side with him. Amusment filled his green gaze as he saw her huffing for breath, he was alot longer then her and his he knew purposly he was taking larger steps then usual. He slowed his pace to match one she'd be comfortable with. "Storm. . ." She murmered. "Hm?" "The Sages. . .you said there were five right? How are we suspose to find them? Its such a big world. . ." Dovie's meow drifted off as she looked at her own paws. "If we're lucky, Fawn will send us a prophecy on where to find the second Sage. But I know we're suspose to head towards the city." Storm answered, his tail gently trailed Dovie's side, he wanted to give her as much comfort as possible, with her best friend gone and her past well behind her. Dovie looked up to meet his eyes. "How do you know?" She asked. Storm shrugged, then he eyed the path they were taking. "I-I just feel it." Dovie grew silent as they trekked on, the scent of fish grew stronger and the trees began to thicken. He felt right at home. "Look!" Dovie purred, she pointed with her nose towards a small pond. The fish scent was very strong there, and he could see geese feeding on the vegitation. Storm stopped. He didn't want to miss this chance, he slowly flicked his tail, a signal for Dovie to stay here and keep silent. Then he got into his hunter's crouch, his tail was low but high enough to keep his balance, his ears were perked. Slowly, he crept closer. Savoring the scent of fish and geese in one place. Storm was susprised that they hadn't started their winter migration but he was also very happy. These geese looked fat and plump, he and Dovie would have a last taste of juicy prey before the cold season comes. Storm crept beside a shrub, it hid his light shaded fur well, slowly, his lime green eyes scanned each and every goose, he wanted the fattest one in the flock. His eyes steadied on a plump-looking white one. Just as he was about to creep closer, a furry body was next to him. He quickly unsheathed his claws and turned his face towards the threat, it was Dovie. "I want to help." Dovie explained silently. Storm let out a tired breath, maybe two would be better then one, plus, it would be good practice for when their battle training again. Storm nodded. Delight glowed in Dovie's eyes as her dark green gaze scanned the flock. Stormo snorted, then he narrowed his eyes at the goose he had been watching before. It had made the big mistake of wandering too far from the flock to feast on some other greenery. Storm stalked his prey, silently moving one paw in front of the other untill he had left the remaing geese to feed and made his way beside a small but slightly large looking rock, he crouched there, waiting for his prey to drift off. After a while, the goose was lost in its food and Storm raced from behind the rock and after he was a tails length away, he pounced. It was, once again, a slippery jump and he tripped over his tail and paws, the goose made a loud suprised sound and flew into the air. But, as clumsy as Storm was, he was also fast. Quick as a cheetah, Storm waved an unsheathed paw in the air and swatted it downwards. He felt blood go down his paws at once and saw feathers drifting through the air. When he brought his paw down again, the goose was hooked onto his claws and lying limp on the ground. A loud noise made Storm turn around. The geese were all flying upwards in a frantic mix of feathers. As Storm saw through the clouds of white and beaks, he saw Dovie wrestling with a goose, and it looked like the goose was winning. Dovie tried to get the goose between her and the ground but the goose was waving its wings all over the place and poking her everywhere with it's beak. Then, Dovie tried to force it to the ground by putting all her weight into one move, and she managed to get it pinned. Making one more attempt to kill, Dovie sank her teeth into the goose's neck, the goose's wings with everywhere at once more a good heartbeat or two, then it lay limp in her jaws. "Nice catch!" Storm shouted as she padded his way. Dovie looked at him accusingly. "Liar! I was horrible!" She growled as she lied it at his paws. "It flew right into my paws but I couldn't keep it still!" Storm nodded and smiled at her. "Well, when your out on the battle-feild your enemy will be wiggling for freedom under your claws," Then he shrugged. "All _you_ need to do is deleiver the first death bite." Dovie nodded and plopped down onto her stomach. She was still alittle dirty but she seemed to have forgotten. "Lets eat." She sighed. Storm nodded and bent his head to sank his fangs into his own kill. The warm taste of juices and blood ran up his mouth, he felt strength run through his body. He felt so much better. As they ate, Storm was well aware of the sun still shining up high. Usually, the sun would be down by now. Even now, Storm felt a little but tired. He needed a nice sunny nap. But he knew that they couldn't waste time, they needed to hurry and find the last of the Sages before the battle began. "Come now," He growled. "We need to get moving." Dovie had a plump stomach and she looked as tired as he. "Fine." As she got up, Storm felt that same feeling as when he was alone in the forest, he felt eyes watching him. "Storm are you ok?" Dovie asked, making him come back to reality. "Im ok." He assured her, though he wasn't sure himself. "Which way is the city?" He asked. "Your my guide." Dovie nodded and pointed with her tail onward. "Bumpy Hills is just ahead, I beleive. I can tell by the trees and soil. The greener it gets the closer we'll be. Though because its this close to winter green might change to yellow. . .or white." Dovie's eyes seemed to be clouded, as if she were trying to think really hard. After a while, she shrugged, nothing but a tiny lift to her small shoulders. "I guess we should start heading out," Storm grunted. Dovie nodded slowly, her eyes still a bit clouded. Storm turned and padded in the direction she had flicked her tail. As they walked on, Storm noticed snow falling from the sky again and he felt a cold breeze run through his pelt. _Winter is coming sooner then I thought. . ._ Dovie padded beside him, he cast a glance at her. Her fur was much shorter then his and her winter fluff was barely growing out. Storm bent his head to look at his chest fur. Ah, just as he suspected it. Every winter his chest fur would grow out first, then around his head and flanks and then his tail, and at last the rest of his body. His silver chest fur was slightly long but it still needed to grow a bit more. He looked over at Dovie again. He could see little patches of fluff on her flank and her tail. She noticed his glances and her eyes grew huge. "What?" She asked. Storm smiled and looked away. "Nothing."

The of the tree barely had any leaves and the leaves that were hanging for dear life on the branches were old and brown, the bark was greyish looking but still brown. "How about this one?" Dovie asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "No." Storm growled as he walked past. "Storm that has to be the sixth tree we looked at tonight! Lets just sleep on one of these branches." Dovie whined. Storm ignored her as he stopped beside welting bush and gazed around at the trees and other vegitation around them. It was dusk now, tonights moon was a half moon. As he looked at it with wide lime green eyes, he admired how much it reminded him of a curved claw. Storm had made up a story that he had scented badger near here and they needn't spend the night on the forest floor, instead they would sleep in a tree. In truth, he had loved the stories about the ancient lives that live in the trees, ever since that one night he slept on the tree branch it was like he felt them surging inside him, giving him strength even though he didn't really need it. "I like this one." Storm murmered as he walked towards a healthy looking tree, the leaves were a mixture of yellow and a faint green and the bark looked like a pale brown. "At last!" Dovie hissed as she quickly ran past him and gazed up the tree. "We can sleep on one of the lower branches." Storm watched as she dug her claws into the branch and hauled herself up. After she was a little but higher, Storm placed his claws into the bark, feeling some splinters fly from trunk, he began placing one paw after the other, this tree was a little stiff but it would do. As he climbed after his companion, Storm felt that rush again. Like something was flowing through his veins and filling him with power. He sighed as his mouth filled with a sweet, yet, tangy texture on its room. Like honey. "Are you stuck?" A voice from above called him back and he had remembered what they were doing. Storm shook his head and then resumed his climbing. Each lift up was like taking a giant blow to his aching muscels. They had been walking all day and both of them were tired. "Storm!" Dovie shouted down at him. Storm hauled himself up one last time before looking up at her. "What?" He growled. "I can smell a faint scent of owl, and I see a hollowed out hole up here, should we spend the night inside?" "Yes!" Storm yowled as he felt his claws sliding downward. Dovie honostly understood and started climbing faster. Finally Storm saw Dovie's tail vanish inside the hollow hole. Storm safely sunk his talons into the edge of the hollowed hole before he hauled himself inside. In the hollowed out hole, Storm smelt a faint scent of owl. _This had obviously been an owl's den._ It was dark, clumps of old leaves were everywhere, they were lucky to have found this place when they did, Storm could smell the frost begining to form from the icey wind outside. "Storm. . .?" A high-pitched yawn called his name, and as his eyes searched the darkness, he saw Dovie curled into a loose ball with her head raised, each of her dark green eyes were dreary. "Im here." Storm grunted as he slowly and carefully made his way over to her. He was much heavier then Dovie and even though the bark could hold her weight, it may not hold his own. When he was at her side, he lied beside of her. The old owl hole wasn't so hollow as it looked from the outside, its walls closed in tight at the sides, forcing their bodies to be pressed up againt each other. As small as she was, it was only natural for Storm to tower over her, more so, while being pushed against her in a tight space like this, his chin rested between her ears, her tail was sprayed over his back, her body was half under his own, and his left paw was completely over her body. He felt awkward, but as he tried to wiggle free, he felt felt the soft breathing of Dovie under him. He bent his head to look down, her eye-lids were gently closed and her whiskers quivered with each calm breath she took. Even though her fur was short, he felt warmth beam from her body, instantly heating up his own. _This could work. . ._ Feeling secure of his surroundings, his eye-lids felt heavy and he slowly drifted off into sleep.

Chapter 5

The sound of war cries filled Storm's ears, the endless night called to the battle-hungry beast that grew inside him. Hisses and snarls filled the night air once more. Storm looked up, stars dappled the night sky, that made him realize he wasn't dreaming of that Ferinex place again. He looked around, pine tree's and bramble bushes were everywhere. Just as he took a deep breath, the scent of something stale washed inside his nostrils, making his whiskers twitch and his mind wander, and when it did, it sounded like a thousand voices were speaking to him at once. _"Sstorm," _They said. _"Ssage of sstrength, murderer of a thoussand ssoulss. . . Ferinex hass grown greater in number ssince your vissit. ." _The voices were too strong for his ears, but he managed to stand. Storm ground his teeth togeather as the voices grew louder, so loud that he could feel something slowly pouring out of his ears and smell the tangy scent of blood. This place may not look like Ferinex, but maybe the Ferinex warriors had caught him right in the middle of one of Fawn's dreams? And why were they speaking to him as if he were some noble hero or something? _"We are the whissperss of your ssoul. . .each Ssage of Sstrength that was before you iss here, talking to you. . .guiding you. . .Fawn will not be here to guide you forever. . .and sso. . .here we are. . ." _Storm crouched a bit and folded his ears on each side of his head. Was that a threat. . .? He looked up at the sky again, the stars were twinkling and shining brightly like the sun. "W-where is Fawn?!" He managed. _"Fawn iss well. . .she iss mourning for a beloved, Ssage of sstrength. . .Darknesss the Ssage of sspeed. . ." _Relief flooded within him, but the voices of the night. . it was torture. _"It getss eassier. . ." _The voices chuckled. He didn't beleive it. Shaking his head to get rid of the colorful spots that stood in his line of vision, Storm straightned himself up and looked around, this forest was empty and deserted. "Take me to Fawn." He meowed. There was a long pause and then, _"That iss forbidden. . .untill you make the journey with the resst of the Ssages to the Mountainss. . .only then can you have the sspeical dream. You will be able to meet the remaining Ssages, and you will also drink the Lion's Blood and make the rest of the journey to the Valley. . ." _The voice was quick, there and gone so fast Storm could barely make out words. He nodded slowly as he drinked in what they were saying, some of the pain drowned from his ears, but blood slowly flowed, he refused to wipe it off as he listened. "Listen oh great phantom of the Mountains or whatever," Storm hissed impatiantly. "Don't you realize that the Ferinex warriors are planning an attack? Like you said, Ferinex has grown greater in warriors, so that means Blackheart has been getting more animals to cross to the Dark side. . ." He paused, not knowing how to ask his question. But he had to know. "Fawn told me that Blackheart got to my friend. . .her name is Honey. . ." He waited a heartbeat longer before he stared up at the moon. "Why did she go with Blackheart? She wouldn't have gone to Ferinex If my life was in danger, or did he lie?" There was a very long pause, so long that he could hear the croaks of toads and frogs that were near. After a while, the voices came back. _"Blackheart walked in Honey's dreamss because he knew that sshe was the most clossesst to you, despite your arguementss, she wass alwayss like kin to you. . .correct?" _Storm narrowed his eyes, not knowing how they had gotten the information, but, hey, they were dead spirits that spoke to him, he susposed they could do anything they wanted. "Correct." He submitted. _"Blackheart convinced her that even though you've been with her ever ssince her Upwalkerss had taken her in, you left without a ssingle good-bye and that you may never return. He told her that you left without even thinking of her at all. . .and that you never really cared, just needed a place to sstay during the cold sseason. . ." _ Storm's ears drooped as the Spirit Voices said what they needed to say. Honey was about. . .what? fifteen moons now? thirteen? She would be mature now all grown up. He couldn't help but think all of this was his fault, everytime he thought of Honey now, all he could see was her standing beside Bat and Blackheart, all blood-stained with a cat under her claws and her eyes slowly turning that deathly red. . .his body shook and a shiver went down his spine. _"Ah yess, and another thing. . ." _The Spirit said, almost a whisper. "Y-yes?" Storm croaked. _"Honey iss no longer Honey. Blackheart hass renamed her. Sshe is now curssed with the name Amari." _Amari. . .the name didn't suite her at all. She _was _honey. Sweet and creamy, bright and all. . .she would never be Amari to him. _Never. _ As he took it all in, another shudder ran down his spine, his heart broke in half, how could she do this? She should know how much she ment to him despite Blackheart's words. He took in a deep breath, his tail twitching. He had a feeling that the Spirit's were gone. The air seemed empty and thin. Just as he was about to close his eyes and wake up into the real world a purr rose from behind him. Quickly, he turned with his claws unsheathed, fur bristling, and his lips pulled back in a vicious snarl. He was _not _in the mood for playing, not now. As his line of vision focused on the blurred object, he saw the outline of a cat, though her body was shaded as if the natural fur color was a blackish grey, he could see her eyes perfectly through the darkned forest. One pine green and one ocean blue. "Fawn. . ." He sighed, sheathing his claws and relaxing his shoulder muscels. As her form began to become visible in the darkness, the first thing he could see was her pretty pink nose. And then the color started of her fur started to become visible, her tail, her ears, and then her legs and paws. "Leaving so soon? Without a good-bye?" She purred. "I-I. . ." Storm struggled for the right words. For some reason, her standing there, the moon's light reflecting off her cream ginger fur. . .it made his stomach whirl. "I was just joking!" She complained, amusment glittering in her eyes. "Ah. . .yes." Was the only thing Storm could manage. The amusment in her eyes dimmed, only to be replaced by deep worry. "Storm?" She murmered. "Whats wrong?" She took a couple of steps towards him, there was only a paw full of space left between them. He narrowed his eyes in frustration, everytime she got close to him like this. . .it made him want to pull her in close and tackle her onto the ground. He wanted to get all tangled up! With her. He swallowed, stepping back, he wanted that. . .but he didn't want that. They were from two diffrent worlds, they were only brought togeather by a prophecy, and would never work out the way he would have hoped. But her scent was swirling around him, he almost stepped towards her but he forced himself not to. Does she even know the power her scent has over him? That _she_ has over him? _Everytime we touch. . . _ "Nothing." He snapped. Suprised lit Fawn's eyes, immediatly covered up by pain. He felt horrible. "I told you before," He meowed, more calmly. "Im a cat who likes space." Fawn's eyes suddenly became empty as she sat, her tail curled at the end and she stared down at her paws. "Did I do something wrong?" Fawn meowed. He didn't think she ment to say that outloud but she did, he winced, not knowing what to say. Suddenly, she looked up and her green and blue eyes met his lime green, they were filled with that same sorrow and pain he had seen in them when they had first met. "Please, Storm, if I have did something to wrong you, please let me right it. . ." Her words were filled with pain and misery, so much he couldn't bear to listen. She was so. . .submissive tonight. "Fawn. . ." Storm was immediatly by her side, supporting her body as she leaned against him. Her face was burried in his chest fur, he was sure she was listening to his heart. Hopefully she wouldn't notice how fast it's beating. As he felt her breath on his fur, Storm bent his head and ran his tongue down her head and gently traced the line of her ears with his nose, he was speechless, she was. . .the most prettiest cat he had ever seen, so smart, and caring. So gentle, and sweet. He pulled away from her, just a little bit to peer into her eyes. She held her head low, staring at her paws. Storm used his paw to lift up her chin, as he did this, her eyes cast downwards. "Fawn. . .?" He murmered. She looked up at him, her eyes were so emotional. "Storm. . ." When Fawn said his name, it was like floating through a river full of honey. So sweet and so gentle. . .he loved it. Storm smiled at her, she smiled back and lifted her eyes up to his. His stomach was in whirls once more. He remembered the first time she came into his dreams, her scent. . .so rare and strong, she was golden. "You remind me of. . ." Fawn's meow echoed off as remembrance sparked in her eyes. "Of. . .?" Storm saw her eyes cast downwards and she moved her head closer to his chest again, like she was trying to hide her face. "Arrow." She meowed. "Arrow. . .?" Fawn looked up at him, she made a movement, so quick that he couldn't react, but he knew from the moment she left a sweet feeling on his muzzle that she touched her nose with his. But when he looked down at her again, she was licking his chest, as if she couldn't get enough of the silver color.  
He couldn't take it anymore, all these mixed signals, he already knew his feelings for her were real, but what if she didn't share his emotions? "Fawn," He meowed, pulling away from her. Fawn looked up at him again, her eyes were emotionless as ever. "Yes?" He didn't really know how to say this to her, he was never able to tell any cat how he truely felt, inside, but when Fawn's around. . . "How do you feel about me?" He asked. Fawn's eyes -as if it were possible- went even blanker. Then, without a warning, she moved away from him and padded deeper into the woods. Anger and frustration gripped at him, what was that? Without thinking, Storm stood up and strolled after her. As he walked deeper into the forest, the tree's began to fade and tall long marsh grass replaced it, like in his first dream with Fawn. The only diffrence was that the fireflies weren't out tonight. He walked on, Fawn's scent of roses grew stronger with each step, as he looked around he noticed how much the landscape changed to look like the marsh he and Fawn were in when they first met. He kept on walking untill he saw that ocean, streching for miles upon miles, and that boulder that lied on the shore, most of all, he saw Fawn's shape sitting beside it, turned to face the sea. Storm didn't hestitate to join her, and it wasn't very long untill he was a mouse length behind her, here, the stars shined bright and reflected on her ginger coat perfectly. "When- After my mate, Arrow, drowned. . .I thought it wouldn't be possible for me to love again," She meowed. Storm listened, his eyes narrowing. Fawn didn't turn to face him, but she cleared her throat and continued. "When my kits died at birth, I couldn't take the risk of being hurt again. . .I vowed that no tom would take me away from my duty to the Five Sages." Storm slowly crept by her side, when he looked at her, he noticed her eyes were tightly shut closed. "But. . ." Fawn opened her eyes and stared at him with a blank expression. "One day I walked in the dreams of a. . .stubborn, stupidly strong, tom who cared enough to travel so far into the unknown and risk his life for a prophecy. . .I knew then. . .that when Sage told me Arrow wasn't ment to be the father of my kittens," She stared at him, his heart was beating franticly as he saw a sparkle of- of something in her eyes. . .he just didn't know what it was. "He ment you. . ." Storm closed his eyes, then he unsheathed his claws and sank them into the ground. She _did _feel the same way. . . But her talking about kittens. . .it made things worse, he opened his eyes and gazed at her, she was smiling at him, her eyes glittering with amusmnt and glowing with love. "Any chance this silver tom was handsome?" Storm asked. Fawn laughed, then she nodded. "Yes, he was very handsome." She chuckled. Storm's ears drooped. "Now Im sad, I envy this silver tom you speak of." Amusment glittered in his eyes as he said this, Fawn chuckled more before she lifted an unsheathed paw and cupped him playfully in the ear. "Its you, you oaf." She smiled. Storm's pelt prickled with exitment as he rubbed his nose with hers, shutting his eyes tight, he made a promise to himself. _I'll protect this one this time,_ As he opened his eyes and gazed across the ocean, he thought more sternly, _I promise I will. . ._

Storm opened his eyes, when he awoke, he was still in the owl hole. He shifted his eyes towards the entrance, it was still dark out. Frowning, he tried to move, but he bumped his head on the upper bark. Dovie was still below him, she stirred and shut her eyes tighter but she didn't awaken. Slowly, he untangled their bodies, it took him a while to notice Fawn's scent still clinging onto his coat, it made him smile. When he was untangled from Dovie, Storm half crawled and half walked towards the entrance. How was it still dark out? He felt wide awake, he looked up at the stars. They were still shining bright, he looked down, they weren't too high in the air but they were high. Slowly, he hooked his claws onto a branch a whisker higher then the owl hole and tried to carefully climb down. He slid down with ease, his claws, once again, hitting sap as he went along. When he landed on the ground he felt the crunches of leaves hit his pads, the leaves of the trees had fallen and made a small pile below. Ignoring the crunches, he walked away from the hollow. The cool night wind brushed at his pelt as he walked smoothly through the trees, avoiding stepping on anymore leaves and tasting the air once and a while. As he weaved his way through the vegitation, he didn't smell a single thing. The forest was empty. Not even a single scent lingered in the air, and when he did find something, it was oddly faint. He wasn't hungry, but he suspected that Dovie might be once she woke from her slumber. He gave it one last try, when he failed, Storm followed his scent trail back to the tree. When he arrived a few tail lengths away, he stopped as he watched Dovie pace back and forth infront of him. She didn't seem to notice his arrival, but by the worried look on her face, she must have thought something horrible might have happened. "Dovie, are you ok?" He asked, slowly walking towards her. Dovie quickly spun around to face him, with her eyes wide, he could see her emotions as clear as day, something was wrong. The sun still hasn't risen and stars still shined brightly, he narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. Dovie came a couple of paw steps closer to Storm. "S-Storm!" She sighed in releif. "Thank the stars you're here! I-I have to tell you something!" Worry floated in Dovie's words as she gently brushed pelts with him in greeting. "Yes?" Storm grunted, walking a little farther so he could sit next to the tree, leaning on it as he listened. "Well, when I was asleep. . .I had a very bad dream. . ." Dovie began. "The trees were very large and it smelt. . .dead in some way. I thought I was having another dream, you know, from Fawn. . .but. . ." When she didn't continue, Storm narrowed his eyes at her. "But. . ." He pressed. Dovie sat and shifted her paws. Soon, she lifted her head and stared at him. "I saw Bat." She meowed. Storm's eyes grew wide, his claws slid from their sheaths and sunk into the ground, he gritted his teeth so he woulnd't say anything too harsh to scare her, instead of snarling and snapping, Storm regained his cool and lowered his head. "Please, continue." He mewed. Dovie had a releived look in her eyes as she sat up straight again. "He was with a few other cats I didn't know. There was a torn up white female, a white male with black spots, a white and grey female with a bushy tail, and a silver tabby male with a scarred muzzle. But there was one that stood out the most, he spoke for all of them and he spoke as if he beleived what they were doing was the right thing to do- I think it was the Leader of the Darkness you and Fawn were thinking of. . .I think it was Blackheart." Storm's ears perked up and his tail twitched at Dovie's words. Blackheart? Visiting Dovie? Blackheart and Bat in the same place visiting Dovie? Whatever they said to her- whatever they tried to convince her to do, couldn't be good. "Are you sure?" Storm asked. "What did he look like?" Dovie tilted her head and thought for a heartbeat, then finally her whiskers quivered. "He was black- more like raven black. . .he had white paws and his body was filled with battle-scars and his eyes. . .they were. . ." Dovie seemd to be lost in thought, for she didn't finish her observation. Storm cleared his throat to keep cool. "Red?" He provided. Dovie blinked a few times and then nodded. "Yes. They were red, they really scared me, Storm." There was a whimper in her voice, like a cowering dog or something. "What did they say to you?" Storm asked, ignoring the emotion in her voice. "First, Bat spoke, he said that I was wrong for following you like I was your pet, rolling over everytime you said so, hunting everytime you ordered me to, he told me that you were just using me so that you wouldn't have to tend to yourself. He said you were taking advantage of my kindess. Then he told me that sooner or later, that Sage of strength inside you will climb out run through the forest like a wild fire, destroying everything and its path and killing everyone and that I would be the first of many. . ." Storm thought about that. Last time he checked, she _chose _to travel along. And he was _not _using Dovie for his own needs, he was testing her skills on hunting to see how long she'd stay alive in the wild, so far so good. It seemed to him that Bat was trying to convince her. . ."And what did Blackheart say?" He asked. Dovie nodded and went on, "Well. . .even though he was silent during the time Bat was talking, I noticed that he kept exchanging glances with the torn up female, as if he was confirming something. . .then when Bat finished, he took up the rest. Saying that when you find the other four Sages where would it leave me? And that when the battle comes between Light and Dark who do I think will win? He told me that he's been gathering the souls of many from every crack and corner he could find, taking them in and treating them nicely, gaining their trust. . .then h-he told me that Marcie has been careless lately. . .letting her kits wonder about without an escort. . ." She looked at him again, the worry returned to her eyes. Storm grunted, "What?" He growled. Dovie looked at her paws and scraped the ground with her claws. "I think he has one of Marcie's kittens." She meowed finally. Storm snorted, during the time he met Marcie she seemed to overprotective of her kittens that he didn't dare set paw where he wasn't wanted, If Marcie wasn't fit to be a mother then who was? _Fawn. . ._ He shook the thought from his head, Fawn had done her rounds, and he doubted she wanted any more. "How can you be so sure when you don't have proof?" He hissed. Dovie jerked to her paws and bared her teeth, her tail flicked with anger as she glared at him. "I can feel it, Storm! I can feel it in my whiskers!" Her voice was a plea and a whine, he expected that. After watching her for a few heartbeats, Storm waved his tail in the air. "Did he say anything about this darkness? It feels like the night is longer then usual." As he said this, he gazed up at the moon, it was full and bright, a beautiful orb in the air. Dovie had that "oh almost forgot" look on her face. "Yes, matter of fact, he did," Then she sighed. "He said that, because of his immortality, he was able to make the night longer, so his training could last a little bit longer." She answered. Storm snorted. "Then why not make it night every day?" He growled. "He said that controlling the night like this takes alot of power and energy away from him, so it's going to be used on very rare occasions." She answered. Storm nodded slowly. _Now about Marcie's kittens. . . _ Ofcourse, he wasn't going to act unless it was confirmed by a reliable source- Fawn ofcourse. He jerked a little as he suddenly felt Fawn's presence. The scent of roses were oddly faint as her voice rang in her head. *Ok, Im on it.* She meowed gently. _Thank you, Fawn. . . _Storm thought as he closed his eyes, he waited for a response, if he was even going to get one. *Don't mention it* She finally responded. _Don't overwhelm yourself, _Storm warned. _You've done too much for me already. _No answer. "Storm?" Dovie's meow made him jump. "Huh?" Dovie had an impatiant look on her face. "What are we going to do? Im so worried that he has one of Marcie's kittens. . .what if he's training him or her to be evil killers like himself? What if it's Sunny- Or Andy- Oh no! What if it's Lily?!" While Dovie rambled on about wich kitten it might be, Storm focused on the problem at paw. _So Bat and Blackheart tried to manipulate Dovie, eh? Turn her on me?_ Either way, she obviously didn't fall for the bait. Dovie may not be much for fighting and hunting, but she was no idiot, she knew when she was being used or taken for granted. He smiled, she was obviously Fawn's kin. . .

Blackheart scored his claws across the rock wall of his den, as he did this there was a loud screeching sound. He snarled as he raked them across again and again and again, each score ended with the same sound. The puny little cat didn't even talk, she just sat there with this disgusted look on her face. How rude. Just as he was about to take his rage on another part of his den, the sound of a mew rose from his entrance. "Blackheart? You there?" The meow was all too familar. "Come in." He growled, sheathing his claws and sitting with his tail neatly resting on his paws. A heartbeat later, Aurora entered his den. Aurora was a pretty long-furred female with a fluffy tail and bright blue eyes, she was also the mother of Iris. She walked in with her tail and chin raised up high and addressed him in a formal manner, she bowed her head respectfully as she spoke. "I heard how the meeting went," Her voice was silent and confident. Blackheart rolled his eyes. "Why must you always be in the middle of things?" He snarled. Aurora didn't make eye contact but she purred humorisly, stepping closer towards him. "This was only one puny cat, what use is she to Ferinex?" She sat infront of him with a wicked smile. He didn't return it, instead, he looked away from her. "As long as she fights against us there is still a chance my heir will go crawling back." He snarled, thinking carefully. "We could always. . .dispose of her." Aurora shrugged. Blackheart sighed heavily, then he raked her with a glare. "Out of all nightmares, Aurora, even _you _should know better not to play with a Sage of strength's emotions." He snarled. Aurora didn't flinch, wich aggirivated him, each and every one of his warriors should wince under his deathly stare and grovel at his paws. But Aurora was once his sister's friend, and ever since she died giving birth to Bat- Tigerfang, Aurora stuck close to him, so close to know that he wouldn't dare claw her ears off. "Maybe so. But that Fawn kitty should be easy to kill right? She has no fighting experiance," Aurora laughed wickedly. "She fights like a rogue! And how would Storm know? He hasn't drunken the Lion's Blood yet. . ." Blackheart didn't answer, he was too busy sheathing and unsheathing his claws across the stone ground, how could he let such an important cat slip through his claws? They were _so_ close. Finally, he flicked his tail towards her. "Did you eat yet?" He growled. Aurora smiled, then she dipped his head to him. "Thank you. I did." She answered. Blackheart narrowed his eyes at her. "I did! Winston caught me a dove and we shared it!" She exclaimed. "Then I came over here to talk to you." Blackheart snorted but didn't pressure her anymore. Aurora was known to eat as little as possible, when she still had a soul, she was starving herself, untill Blackheart visited her in her dreams and told her that she was wasting her good looks and strength by doing something so stupid. "Even so, Fawn is skilled enough to fight _you _off." He growled. Aurora's eyes grew wide, and from that moment, he knew she took the bait. "Do you think Im weak?" She snarled angrily, standing up and scraping her paws on the stone floor. "I am _not _weak, Blackheart. I will kill the little scrap of fur myself just to prove it!" Aurora had lost her cool, he loved it when she did that, always trying to be the best at everything. "I dont know. . ." He mused, sitting back on his haunches. "Fawn's really good at things like this. . ." Something sparked in Aurora's eyes then, he couldn't tell what it was, but as she narrowed her eyes into unseeable slits, he knew it couldn't be good. "I will dispose of this, Fawn. I bet your whiskers I will." She meowed, Blackheart could barely hear her, Aurora's hiss was so low that it barely left an echo on the cave walls. "Then," Blackheart hissed, just as low and unhearable. "you shall do my bidding."

Storm nodded as he swatted Dovie away with a sheathed paw, she went soaring nearby. The sun was out today, but there was still a dim feeling in the air. Dovie landed on her paws and swerved around to retaliat. Fur bristling, she leaped at him. Storm felt the heavy weight of Dovie as she landed on him, tackling him to the ground. He felt her teeth prick his neck just a bit, her hind paws pressed against his stomach, scraping him gently with their claws. Dovie had gotten a little stronger and she had gained weight, so far, she was shaping up to be a good warrior. Seeing a weak point, Storm slithered his paw under her stomach and pushed hard, Dovie hissed as he pushed her away from him. But she recovered quickly. "Better." Storm commented, getting low to dodge to her second leap. Turning around to face her, Storm leapt at her and pinned her to the ground. Dovie bared her teeth in a dog-like way before clawing at his ears. "Watch it!" Storm hissed, having to let her go. "Sorry." Dovie mewed before sending a blow to his ribs. The impact nocked Storm off his paws, he was out of breath, resting on his side, he saw Dovie crouched low to the ground like she had been taught, her tail crept slowly around her as she watched him with those big dark gree eyes. "I yeild." Storm said grimly. Happiness filled Dovie's face as she leaped up, tail in the air, she purred at him. Storm rolled his eyes and rolled onto his back, the sun beat on his stomach and warmed the digesting food. It had been a moon since he had heard from Dovie, she had allowed herself to go on a mission to confirm some information. And ofcourse, he had allowed her to. "These days you lose so easily, Storm." Dovie teasted, resting her body beside him. Snorting, Storm nipped at the paw closest to his mouth. "Thats because I'd break you, smarty. Sage of strength, remember?" He growled playfully. Though Dovie had proven to be a skilled hunter and wonderful companion, Storm would have enjoyed the company of some cat like Honey or Fawn. But Dovie would work. Snow still hadn't covered the ground, instead it left slight frosts on the grass or on leaves. The prey was slowly going undergroud and gettig ready for the harsh winter yet to come. Slowly, Storm heaved himself up, his tail swayed slowly and Dovie narrowed her eyes before reaching out her paws and trying to pin it down, like a kitten. "When you're done." Storm meowed. "can you go hunting? I thought I smelt starling." Dovie smiled and nodded. "Of course, I'll do that right away." She purred. Storm watched her stand up straight and stretch her legs before walking into the undergrowth. When the tip of her tail had vanished from his sight, Storm raised a paw and ran his tongue over it. Ears flicking, Storm heard something rustle the bramble bush from not so far off. Narrowing his lime green eyes, Storm stood and stalked over to have a look. A scent struck him hard when he was about two mouse lengths from his projectile. It was strange and familiar to him. Like death, but another scent added onto it. . . pine? A hissing sound caught his attention. Turning, Storm was face to face with a white tom cat. The tom leapt at him, claws outstretched. Storm reared up onto his hind paws and took the blow that toppled him down to the ground, but he retaliated by swerving the tom below him and gripping at his shoulders with his claws. Then he felt his temper snap. Something sizzled, like a leaf catching on fire or something. It flared in his heart and sent the last bit of his sanity away. The tom below him hissed and spat. Storm snarled, raising his paw, he scored his claws down the tom's stomach, barely slicing him in two. A loud wailing sound made Storm turn, his left paw was blood soaked, the tom he had just killed was young and out of practice. Easy prey. A silver tabby emerged from the bramble bush and stared at the white tom with wide eyes. "That was my brother!" She screeched. Storm wiped his paw on the grass below them, smearing the ground with a red stain. "One less Ferinex warrior." He growled. The growl was unlike him, and it was like something had devoured the real Storm and replaced him with a killer. And he was thirsty. The silver tabby unsheathed her claws and ran at him. Storm used his strength as an advantage and swatted her out of the way. The tabby lost her balance and slipped. But, unlike her brother, she recovered quickly. She ran at him and ran her claws at his face, Storm dodged the blow that would have messed up his good looks. She was fast though. The tabby kept the blows coming, once or twice she had ran her claws in his fur. But she was only wasting energy. When she was slowing down and tired, Storm rammed his head at her chest, sending her soaring. When she landed on the ground, Storm towered over her. Narrowing his eyes, he placed one paw on her neck and leaned in closer. "Did Blackheart send you?" He asked in a hiss. When she did not answer, Storm pushed on her throat untill her eyes grew big. "Well?" He hissed. Letting the pressure off her neck, the tabby gasped for breath and shook her head. "Bat?" Again, the tabby shook her head. "Who. Send. You?!" Storm bend his head and tugged at her neck, she shrieked in pain as he tore a large tuft from her neck and spit it on the ground, blood oozed from the wound. "Would rather die." The female hissed. "Brave words." Storm admitted, right before he bit fully at her neck untill he heard a crack. A high-pitched sound send the crows flying. Storm's ears perked, the sound of that scream could be no other. Breathing hard, Storm followed Dovie's scent trail. He arrived beside a river. He saw Dovie fighting another pair of cats. A black and white tom was trying to rip her tail off while a orange and white tabby tom tried to break her neck, as he did the silver tabby. Quickly, thorn leaped at the one whom threatned her life. Both he and the black and white tom struggled togeather in mass of fur. "Storm!" The black and white tom hissed. At first, Storm was confused. How could this stranger know his name? Then it dawned on him that Blackheart probably sent loads of cats after him. His heart skipped a beat while he was clawing at the toms eyes. Was this the start of the war? When he didn't even have all of the Sage's at ready? The black and white tom hissed as he raked his claws down Storm's stomach. Wincing, Storm used his strength to kick him off. When the cat went soaring elsewhere, Storm rolled onto his stomach and quickly licked the almost fatal wound. The tom's claws didn't dig in to rip the flesh, thank the stars, but they did managed to make him bleed. Storm looked over to Dovie, the tabby had her under his hold and was now trying to get to her neck to deliever, what can only be hypothisised, as a death bite. But Dovie kept clawing his face out of range. Storm stood and ducked just in time as the black and white tom leaped at him. The tom went barreling into the river, splashing Storm. Shaking his pelt a little, Storm pounced on the tom that had Dovie pinned, knocking him aside, Storm looked down at Dovie. She was out of breath, and her wounds didn't seem so fatal. "Storm!" She shrieked. Something hard landed on Storm's back but and toppled him over. Claws dug at his neck and hooked to his rear. Raising his head, Storm bit the paw closest to his mouth. The white and black tom had come back. Hissing, the tom reared, seeing a weak point, Storm took it. Freeing his paw from under his own weight, Storm raked them across the soft part of the tom's stomach. Yowling in pain, the tom went over. He shuddered and then lay still, all the while, Storm watched his life ebb away. After the tom lay dead, Storm looked over to Dovie again. The tabby had her trapped between the river and himself. The tom could easily kill Dovie and was moving in this very moment, and by the frightned look on Dovie's face, he bet she couldn't swim. Sighing, Storm ignored the burning on his chest and shoulders, racing towards Dovie, he leaped at the tom, but didn't knock him over. He bit at the tom's neck and ran his claws down his shoulder. The tom growled in outrage as he tried to buck Storm off, but Storm kept hanging. Dovie looked dazed for a second and then frightned again. "Hide!" Storm ordered when the tom managed to kick him off. Storm managed to land on his paws with ease, turning around to meet the tom's claws across the bridge of his muzzle. Yowling in pain, Storm backed away. The tom looked satisfied, and beyond him, Storm could see Dovie's wide tipped tail vanish into the undergrowth. _ Thanks alot. _ He thought she would have stayed and fighted by his side, but he was wrong. Storm raised his paw and slashed at the tom's face, only meeting air. The tom, however, bit at his neck and started herding him towards the river. Uh oh. The river was rushing fast and even though Storm could swim, he doubted he could stay afloat. "Sage of strength?" The tom mocked when the back of Storm's paws met the edge of the river. "Come on. I thought you would be a challenge." Storm stood tall and raised his head before glaring at the tom and snorting. "'Daw, you really think that? While Im flattered, Im intrested in females. But thank-you." Storm sneered. The tom snorted and claws at Storm's ear, feeling claws rake against his left ear, Storm yowled and watched as his crimson blood splattered to the ground. Grunting, Storm looked at the tom. "That was my good ear. I needed that for hearing your heart stopping." He growled. The top leaped and pinned half of his body inside the river. Storm's head went under, he held his breath and tried not to drink the water. He'd die faster that way. Kicking his legs, Storm felt his claws break flesh and he took that chance to lift his head and gulp for air. When he surfaced he seen the tom looking at him mockingly. "Blackheart never told me you'd be so easy to kill. And wouldn't it be nice if all of Ferinex gives me a nickname for destroying the Sage of strength?" He crooned. Storm felt his head forcefully go under again but he forced his head to arise just to purr, "Stupidy the Foolish. What a nice name that would be." He was panting and was about to just allow the tom to slaughter him already. He was a Sage without the full strength, he hadn't tasted the Lion's Blood, so of course he would die so easily. Well, that was what he thought untill he looked up and saw Dovie on a branch just above them. The branch was thick but didn't look strong enough to support her weight, but still. Dovie slowly walked across. Idiot. She looked bold up there though, he had to give her that. Just when the tom was about to send him under again, the branch snapped and both it and Dovie came barreling down. The branch landed on the tom's head, sending him down, and Dovie landed on her paws a few paw steps away. Releaved, Storm quickly stood and managed to get back into a battle stance, but there was no need, the tom who had once been a threat was on his side. His flanks weren't moving so he wasn't breathing. "And I thought he had feelings for me." Storm murmered. "What?" Dovie looked over her shoulder to look at him. Storm looked at her shrugged. "Forget it. Thanks for coming back." He meowed. Dovie shook her fur and then winced, probably from the wound on her back. "We are in this togeather, Storm." She purred. "Yes," Storm said awkwardly. "togeather. But that probably won't be so long if we don't treat your wounds." Dovie looked at her body. The wounds she had recieved looked far worse then Storm's, his would probably mend over night, but the claw marks on her needed herbs. A cold wind blew, and Dovie shivered. Storm quickly drew himself to her side and warmed her with his fur. "Come on. Lets go get you some shelter, then I'll go herb hunting." It was dusk when he returned back to Dovie with some herbs, this land had barely any herbs at all, and he picked whatever he could find. Some moss, alder, and wild poppy was all he could find, and it was just fine. So long as they dont get attacked again. Storm dabbed Dovie's wound with the moss. Then, after the bleeding had stopped, he got out the alder and chewed it up. After it was finely chewed and ready to treat Dovie's wounds, Storm pressed it across every scratch or wound she had. Dovie hissed as the herbs seeped into her, for a second, Storm thought she might bite him. "I guess this means we'll be training more, huh?" Dovie meowed dryly, Storm was shaking the poppy seeds from the wild poppy plant. The small black seeds settled on a leaf Storm had found. "No. You did well, just try to stay clear of the claws." Storm murmered. "Now lick." Dovie's whiskers twitched as she lapped up the seeds from the leaf. "Yuck." She growled. Storm shrugged, nosing her shoulder wound, he noticed that it wasn't as nearly as bad as the rest. Dovie yawned, her tail flicking. "Go to sleep." Storm meowed in a soothing voice. Dovie nodded, resting her head in her paws, Storm watched her fall into sleep. Sitting back on his haunches, Storm thought about Blackheart, he could be planning another attack at any moment. But the silver tabby he had killed told him that Blackheart hadn't sent them. So who? She had denied Bat as well, so Honey then? No, Honey may have betrayed him, but she wasn't that devious. Not at heart. Storm looked around, they had taken shelter inside a badger den. The stale scent of badger told him that it was old and the former owner of the den hadn't been here for moons. Still, it wasn't safe for them to stay for too long. Tired after the brawl, Storm curled up beside Dovie, wanting to warm him with his scent and heat. Slowly, sleep drained him. And soon enough, he was asleep.


End file.
